The United Arab Emirates hosted Israel and the United States in the capital Abu Dhabi last Thursday for a secret meeting to discuss plans for the Gaza Strip after the war with Hamas ends.
According to a report in Axios, citing two Israeli officials, Jerusalem dispatched Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer to the meeting, while Washington sent White House special envoy Brett McGurk and State Department counselor Tom Sullivan. UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah Bin Zayed hosted the gathering.
In addition, two senior Israeli defense officials who have been working on the “day after” scenario in the Strip, traveled with Dermer.
Axios reporter Barak Ravid noted that a day before the secret summit, Emirati diplomat Lana Zaki Nusseibeh laid out proposals for a post-war Gaza in an op-ed in the Financial Times. The UAE’s permanent representative to the United Nations called for the establishment of a “temporary international mission” in Gaza “that responds to the humanitarian crisis, establishes law and order, lays the groundwork for governance and paves the way to reuniting Gaza and the occupied West Bank under a single, legitimate Palestinian Authority.”
In an interview with FT published alongside her op-ed, Nusseibeh said that the UAE would consider boots on the ground in Gaza.
“The UAE could consider being part of the stabilization forces alongside Arab and international partners … at the invitation of a reformed Palestinian Authority, or a P.A. led by an empowered prime minister,” she said.
