Egypt should assume responsibility for Gaza for 15 years in exchange for the erasure of its external debt, opposition leader Yair Lapid posited in his Tuesday speech in Washington for the conservative-leaning Foundation for Defense of Democracies think tank.
According to Lapid’s plan, which was presented for the first time, the international community and its regional allies would cover Egypt’s debts.
“During this period, Gaza will be rehabilitated, and conditions for self-governance will be created. Egypt will be the central player and oversee the reconstruction, which will further strengthen its economy,” Lapid said.
He reasoned that Israel wants to transfer control of Gaza to a non-Hamas entity capable of maintaining security and that Gaza cannot be rebuilt without an authorized body to oversee the effort and maintain security, alongside the State of Israel.
Egypt would benefit, per Lapid, as its economy is on the verge of collapse, which threatens the stability of the country and the entire Middle East.
“The external debt of $155 billion does not allow Egypt to rebuild its economy and strengthen its military,” he said.
Lapid’s vision sees Egypt taking control of the Gaza Strip through a UN Security Council resolution, including internal security and civilian management.
The control, according to Lapid, would be defined as “trusteeship” with the goal of transferring Gaza to the Palestinian Authority after a process of reform and reduction of extremism, with measurable benchmarks.
The rehabilitation process would begin under Egyptian supervision, with Saudi Arabia and the Abraham Accords countries participating in working groups in the spirit of the Negev Forum. The US would invest in Gaza in cooperation with Egypt, according to the plan set forth by US President Donald Trump.
Lapid's plan for Gaza residents
Under Lapid’s plan, Egypt would allow any Gaza resident who wishes to leave and has a place to go to do so in an orderly manner.
Egypt would work to prevent arms smuggling into Gaza, destroy tunnels, and eliminate remaining terrorist infrastructure.
Lapid said an Egyptian-Israeli-American security mechanism would be established to address immediate threats.
According to Lapid’s office, the opposition leader formulated this plan in recent months with the involvement of senior political and security officials and presented it to senior Trump administration officials at the White House and leading senators during his visit to the US.
Lapid’s office described his offering as “a complementary plan to the principles presented by President Donald Trump in recent weeks.”