GAZA (Dispatches) — A joint U.S.-Israeli plan to divide the Gaza Strip into separate zones of control is drawing growing condemnation across the region, with Arab officials warning it could entrench Israeli occupation and sideline the Palestinian resistance movement, Hamas.
Under the proposal, outlined by U.S. Vice President JD Vance and Donald Trump’s adviser Jared Kushner in Tel Aviv this week, Israel would control over half of Gaza while reconstruction funds flow only to those areas deemed “secure.” 
The rest of the enclave, still under Hamas administration, would remain blockaded until the group’s disarmament and removal from power.
Kushner said the plan aimed to “build a new Gaza” within the Israeli-controlled zone, while denying reconstruction aid to regions under Hamas’s control. 
Arab mediators described the idea as a dangerous attempt to redraw Gaza’s borders under military occupation. “This is not peace-building — it’s partition under siege,” one diplomat said.
An internal Saudi foreign ministry document reveals Riyadh’s intention to play a leading role in post-war Gaza, including supporting an international peacekeeping force tasked with “marginalizing” Hamas. 
The report, dated September 29, outlines Saudi Arabia’s goal to “reform the Palestinian Authority” and gradually transfer governance from Hamas to the PA “in a manner that serves the aspirations of the Palestinian people” within the framework of a two-state solution.
The document states that disarmament should proceed “through international and regional agreements that guarantee neutrality,” in coordination with Egypt, Jordan, and the PA. 
Analysts say the plan aligns with Washington’s push to integrate Saudi Arabia into the Trump-backed normalization process with Israel, alongside the UAE and Bahrain.
Critics, however, argue the move would strip Palestinians of self-determination and turn Gaza into a permanent zone of foreign control. “The so-called ‘safe areas’ are little more than fenced enclaves designed to weaken the resistance and cement Israeli dominance,” said a Palestinian analyst in Gaza.
Hamas officials have rejected any plan that conditions reconstruction on disarmament, insisting their weapons are essential for defending Palestinian sovereignty. “We will not lay down arms while our land remains occupied,” a Hamas spokesperson said.
Meanwhile, far-right Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich dismissed Saudi conditions linking normalization with the creation of a Palestinian state. “Keep riding your camels in the desert,” he said at a conference, underscoring Israel’s defiance toward regional calls for a genuine political settlement.