Sisi: Egypt won’t take part in 'injustice' of Palestinian displacement

Egypt will not participate in the displacement of Palestinians, an "act of injustice" that would threaten Egyptian security, President Abdel Fattah el Sisi said on Wednesday, his first public response to Donald Trump's call for Cairo to take in residents of Gaza.

Speaking at a press conference with visiting Kenyan president William Ruto, Sisi said Egypt would work with the new US president to reach peace between Israel and Palestinians based on a two-state solution.

"Regarding what is being said about the displacement of Palestinians, it can never be tolerated or allowed because of its impact on Egyptian national security," Sisi said.

An Egyptian source also denied Tuesday media reports about a phone call between the Egyptian and US presidents over the resettlement of Palestinians.

A high-level Egyptian source, however, denied any phone call between the two leaders.

"Any phone call by the president is announced according to procedure followed with heads of state," the state-affiliated Al-Qahera News channel said, citing the source.

Demolition site

Trump said on Saturday that Egypt and Jordan should take in Palestinians from Gaza, which he called a "demolition site" following 15 months of Israeli bombardment that made most of its 2.3 million people homeless.

Any suggestion that Palestinians leave Gaza, territory they want for a state, has been anathema to the Palestinian leadership for generations and repeatedly rejected by neighbouring Arab states since the Gaza war began in October 2023.

Jordan is already home to several million Palestinians, while tens of thousands live in Egypt. The foreign ministries of Egypt and Jordan have both rejected Trump's suggestion in recent days.