Trump has said he wants to permanently displace Gaza’s 2.3 million Palestinians, take control of the war-devastated enclave and rebuild it as the “Riviera of the Middle East”.

The sources said Saudi Arabia and Qatar were also involved in the diplomatic effort to hold a summit of the 57-state, Saudi-based Organisation of Islamic Co-operation.

The Islamic gathering would be held after an Arab summit due to take place in Cairo on February 27, but no exact date has been agreed, said the sources. They added that it would take place in either Egypt or Saudi Arabia.

It is the latest in a series of diplomatic moves by Egypt to build broad international opposition to the proposals by Mr Trump, which demand that Egypt and Jordan take in the Palestinians displaced from their homeland. He has threatened to withdraw aid from the two US-allied nations if they refuse.

The aim of the summits is to demonstrate a united and broad opposition front against Trump’s Gaza proposals so that he may be persuaded to drop the idea, said officials.

However, observers say this course of action appears unlikely at present, given the frequency with which the US President asserts his commitment to the plans.

Egypt borders both Gaza and Israel − with which it signed a US-sponsored peace treaty in 1979 that has long been considered a cornerstone of regional stability. The treaty, however, has come under growing stress since the Israel-Gaza war began in October 2023. Supporting Palestinians’ right to self-determination is a central plank of Egypt’s foreign policy, something that has often strained ties with Israel.

“Rallying the Arab and Muslim worlds against Trump’s ideas for Gaza is meant to put pressure on the American president and influence public opinion in the West,” said one source.

“What Trump has proposed can possibly be undermined and made to eventually crumble, so long as there’s Arab and Islamic unity. It’s important at this juncture to revive the old sentiments and mindset of Arab nationalism. It’s the best defence of the Palestinian cause.”

The Arab summit, the sources have said, will adopt an Egyptian proposal for convening a conference of international donors and regional stakeholders on the reconstruction of Gaza, where most built-up areas have been laid to waste by Israel’s military campaign.

A fragile truce that paused the fighting on January 19 has come under renewed stress this week, amid threats by Israel to resume its attacks in Gaza to eradicate Hamas. On Thursday, Hamas said it would resume the release of hostages, which may ease these tensions.

Egypt, according to the sources, has a Gaza reconstruction plan of its own to counter Trump’s proposals. It will be presented to the Arab summit and the proposed donors conference that will follow. The sources declined to share precise details of this plan, except that it would be staggered over 15 years, with the first three years focused on the restoration of essential services and infrastructure.

However, it does not entail moving Gaza’s residents outside of the territory, they stressed.

Tension between Egypt and the US over Trump’s Gaza proposals is juxtaposed with a close alliance dating back to the 1970s and involving wide-ranging co-operation on security, counter-terrorism and intelligence-sharing, as well as diplomatic co-ordination.

Egypt has also received billions of dollars in US economic and military aid over the years, with an annual $1.3-billion military assistance programme that has helped the most populous Arab nation modernise its armed forces, after years of reliance on Soviet-era weapons.

Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El Sisi has been careful to avoid a public confrontation with Trump over the US leader’s proposal, but also has shown unwavering opposition to the plans, saying Cairo will never be part of an injustice against the Palestinians.

Simultaneously, he has been lavishly praising Trump as a “strong leader” capable of bringing peace and stability to a Middle East torn by the Arab-Israeli conflict for close to a century. The Egyptian leader and his government have also been commending Cairo’s “strategic partnership” with Washington in their pronouncements.

However, said the sources, El Sisi has indefinitely postponed a visit to Washington that had been expected later this month but which was never officially confirmed by Cairo or the White House.

The sources said the decision to put off the visit followed an assessment of the mood in the Trump administration and among loyal members of Congress. This indicated that the visit could fuel tension to a degree that may inflict serious damage to relations.