ISTANBUL 

Saudi Arabia will host a 5-way Arab meeting on Feb. 20 to discuss an Egyptian proposal for rebuilding the Gaza Strip without displacing its Palestinian inhabitants, an Arab League official said on Monday.

The planned meeting will be attended by Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Hossan Zaki, the assistant secretary-general of the Arab League, said in televised statements.

“It is possible that Palestine could be invited to the meeting to discuss the general framework of the (Egyptian) proposal that will be presented to the Arab summit,” he added.

Egypt said early this month that it will host an emergency Arab summit on Feb. 27 following a controversial proposal by US President Donald Trump to take over Gaza and resettle its Palestinian inhabitants to develop it into what he called “the Riviera of the Middle East.”

“These countries will meet this time to coordinate regarding the Egyptian ideas and proposals that will be presented at the Arab summit,” Zaki said.

Zaki noted that the planned Arab summit could be postponed for several days due to “logistical reasons related to the schedules of the leaders of the participating countries.”

“Egypt is keen on having the largest number of leaders attend to ensure the success of the summit,” he added.

The summit aims to “formulate a cohesive, solid and strong Arab position on the Palestinian issue in general, reject the displacement plan that was an Israeli idea and adopted by the US administration, and present a general Arab proposal that counters this American proposal,” Zaki said.

On Sunday, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi confirmed that his country is preparing a "comprehensive” plan to rebuild Gaza without displacing Palestinians.

Trump’s plan for Palestinian resettlement has been rejected by the Arab world and many other nations, who say it amounts to ethnic cleansing.

The controversial idea came amid the ceasefire agreement that took effect in Gaza on Jan. 19, halting Israel’s genocidal war, which has killed nearly 48,300 Palestinians, most of them women and children, and left the enclave in ruins.