Jordanian Official Responds to Netanyahu: Arabs Will Only Support What Palestinians Agree On

SadaNews - A Jordanian official stated to Reuters yesterday evening that Arabs will only support what the Palestinians agree upon and decide, following Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's statement that Israel wants to hand Gaza over to Arab forces to govern.

The official added that security in Gaza should be managed through legitimate Palestinian institutions.

Netanyahu did not provide details regarding the governance arrangements or the Arab countries that may participate.

Netanyahu made this comment to Fox News yesterday, prior to a meeting of a small group of ministers to discuss the military's plans to seize more territory in Gaza.

The Jordanian official, in the first response from a major neighboring Arab state to Netanyahu's remarks, said: "Arabs will not agree to Netanyahu's policies, and they will not fix what he has destroyed."

Meanwhile, Hamas announced in a statement that Netanyahu's comments regarding complete military control over the Gaza Strip are a "coup" against the negotiations aimed at achieving a ceasefire in the sector.

The movement stated in its announcement that "Netanyahu's plans to expand aggression confirm that he seeks to rid himself of his captives and sacrifice them for his personal interests."

Netanyahu stated on Thursday that Israel intends to militarily control the entire Gaza Strip and would ultimately hand it over to "armed forces that govern it appropriately."

He added in an interview with Fox News, in response to a question on whether Israel would control the entire sector: "We intend to. We do not want to keep it. We want a security perimeter. We do not want to govern it. We do not want to be there as a governing entity."

He emphasized that Israel does not intend to manage the Gaza Strip, but wants to transfer it to "Arab forces" and commented: "We do not want to manage it (the Gaza Strip). We want to hand it over to Arab forces that can manage it properly, without posing a threat to us, and provide a decent life for the people of Gaza."

He confirmed that Israel does not want to control the sector, but intends to establish a "security perimeter" for itself, adding that implementing such a plan is "impossible in the presence of Hamas."