Fatah: Trump is "serious," Hamas should hand over Gaza to thwart relocation plan

A representative of Fatah, the movement which runs the Palestinian Authority in Judea and Samaria, told al-Arabiya today (Thursday) that Trump's plan should be taken seriously.

The representative said that "we must take Trump's statements" regarding relocating displaced Gazans abroad "seriously, and the time has come for Hamas to hand Gaza over to the Palestinian Authority to weaken the claims" regarding the ungovernability of the Strip.

A previous report noted that people within the Palestinian Authority were working on a creative approach to Donald Trump's plan: have all the Palestinians displaced in Gaza be moved to Judea and Samaria under the PA's jurisdiction and control.

In exchange for this, the PA would be allowed to build a new Arab city and be recognized as the sole representative of the Palestinian people regarding any negotiations for a future Palestinian state.

The approach of Fatah and the Palestinian Authority differs sharply from that of Hamas and multiple Arab countries, who have refused to even consider or negotiate about Trump's relocation plan, instead stridently protesting the idea and calling it unjust, inhumane, and even a threat to their country's national security.

Hamas in particular has called for Arab unity on the matter in bringing together countries around the world to prevent such a plan from happening under any circumstances.

Fatah's decision to take a different approach, even though they openly oppose relocating Gazans to other countries, probably lies in its ongoing struggle with Hamas for control of the Gazan population.

Ever since 2007, when Hamas violently took control of the strip from the Palestinian Authority, even throwing Fatah members off rooftops, there have been two Palestinian governments claiming to represent the Palestinian people - one in Judea and Samaria run by Fatah, and one in Gaza run by Hamas.

This situation held true until October 7, after which Israel, the United States, and others determined that Hamas cannot continue to govern Gaza. As the readily available alternative, the Palestinian Authority has repeatedly pressed Egyptian mediators and others to let them return to govern Gaza, without Hamas.

However, Hamas has consistently refused to cede all of its power in the Strip, and has at most agreed to share it as part of a technocratic committee. Israel, meanwhile, does not believe that the PA is any less pro-terrorist than Hamas, and does not believe that it can prevent another 2007-like coup.

This attempt to be open to negotiations with Trump may be a way to increase the PA's bargaining power with regard to either the Gaza Strip or at least the Gazan population.