Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi’s planned trip to Washington for talks at the White House is contingent on the exclusion of any plan to displace Palestinians from Gaza from the agenda, Reuters reported on Wednesday.
US President Donald Trump formally invited his Egyptian counterpart Sisi during a phone call on February 1 for a meeting at the White House, the Egyptian Presidency earlier announced.
No date has been established for the proposed visit, a US official stated.
Sisi postpones Washington visit ‘indefinitely’
The “Al-Arabiya” channel reported Egyptian sources confirming Sisi’s visit to Washington has been postponed until further notice.
The sources indicated that “Cairo is angry about the statements from Israel and the US and has sent a clear message to Washington.”
“Egypt rejected three proposals regarding Gaza, all of which involve displacement and not returning,” the sources added.
They also revealed to Al-Arabiya on Tuesday evening that “Egypt will not allocate a piece of land for the residents of Gaza, and Egypt has closed the door on the proposal to allocate land for the residents of Gaza.”
Trump’s controversial plan
US President Donald Trump said that he is “committed to buying and owning Gaza and may give parts of it to other countries in the Middle East to rebuild,” Reuters reported on Sunday.
Trump told reporters on board Air Force One that he would look into individual cases to allow Palestinian refugees into the US.
Egypt rejects displacement
Sisi has previously stressed Egypt’s absolute rejection of the displacement of the people of Gaza, saying: “I say it with utmost frankness… the displacement and deportation of the Palestinian people is an injustice in which we cannot participate.”
He stressed Egypt’s consistent position supporting the Palestinian cause, which can never be relinquished in any way.
During a joint press conference with his Kenyan counterpart William Ruto at al-Ittihadiya Presidential Palace late January, President Sisi added: “If I asked for this from the Egyptian people, they would all take to the streets and tell me no, do not participate in injustice.”
