Egypt declines to receive Palestinian refugees

Even though Israel has asked European leaders to step in, Cairo would not accept refugees from Gaza.

Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly of Egypt visited northern Sinai on Tuesday and pledged that his nation is determined to protect its territory and maintain its sovereignty over it in light of the debate in Egypt over whether or not to welcome Palestinian refugees.

“We are prepared to sacrifice millions of lives to ensure that no one encroaches upon our territory,” Madbouly declared, addressing a gathering of public figures, tribal and military leaders, and members of parliament at al-Arish, close to Egypt’s borders with Gaza and Israel.

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In order to show that “Egypt remains committed to the region,” the prime minister stated Cairo’s intentions to accelerate the development and reconstruction of the Sinai Peninsula.

The involuntary removal of Palestinians is intolerable, according to UN Secretary General Stephane Dujarric’s spokesperson. “We firmly oppose the forcible mass relocation of individuals, end of story. And we’ve demonstrated that consistently in various locations throughout the globe,” he asserted on Tuesday.

Cairo rejects “any attempt to liquidate the Palestinian issue by military means or through the forced displacement of Palestinians from their land,” according to President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, who made this statement on October 21.

The possibility that the 2.3 million Palestinians who now reside in Gaza may relocate to Sinai worries Egyptians.

The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, attempted last week to get European leaders to pressure Cairo into accepting Gazans, as the Financial Times reported. The source claims that attempts to convince Egypt to accept the accord were rejected by France and Germany. Jordan declined to take in Gazan refugees as well.