Egypt has reached an understanding with the United States that no Palestinian will be forced to leave Gaza and that any Palestinian who departs voluntarily will retain the right to return, Minister of State for Media Diaa Rashwan said, describing the arrangement as a key outcome of Egyptian and Arab efforts to counter plans to displace Palestinians.

Speaking to AlQahera News on Tuesday, Rashwan said the threat of displacement would persist as long as the concept of a "Greater Israel" remained part of Israeli political and intellectual discourse.

"This issue will not disappear," he said, arguing that the idea extends beyond Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and remains rooted in Zionist ideology.

Rashwan said Egypt had faced considerable pressure since the outbreak of the Gaza war in October 2023 to accept the transfer of Palestinians to its territory or elsewhere, but had consistently rejected any displacement from Palestinian land.

He stated that President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi's early rejection of displacement helped shape a broader Arab, regional, and international consensus against such a proposal.

Rashwan described the understanding with Washington as significant because it includes the principle that Palestinians who leave Gaza voluntarily retain the right to return.

"The concept of return completely contradicts the idea of displacement," he said, calling it one of the outcomes of Egyptian diplomacy coordinated with Arab partners.

He added that Egypt had promoted an alternative approach to the Palestinian issue based on recognition of a Palestinian state before final-status negotiations, arguing that the Oslo framework had failed to deliver statehood.

On the recently announced US-Iran agreement, Rashwan said opinion polls showed strong support within Israeli society and political circles for hardline policies toward Lebanon and Iran.

"The key question is whether the US administration will prevent Israel from undermining the agreement, including through major military operations," he said.

Rashwan said Israel could instead resort to targeted assassinations, particularly against senior Iranian figures, adding that any agreement could create a more relaxed security environment inside Iran.

While Israel can launch major strikes, whether it does so will depend largely on Israeli political decisions and the US position, he said.

"I believe there is a strong possibility that the American president will not allow that," Rashwan noted.

On regional affairs, Rashwan said Egypt views Arab national security as inseparable from its own and has consistently opposed attacks on Gulf states. He stated that Cairo had chosen diplomacy over direct intervention in conflicts in Libya and Sudan despite the security risks they pose.

"Libya could have reached a situation many times worse than what exists today," he said, crediting Egyptian and international efforts with helping contain the conflict.

Rashwan also announced that he had called for an emergency meeting of Arab information ministers to develop a unified Arab media strategy for regional crises and draft an Arab code of media ethics. He said preparations for the meeting would begin once the expected US-Iran agreement is formally signed.

Media reform and access to information

Turning to Egypt's media landscape, Rashwan said he was dissatisfied with the current state of journalism and media, pointing to shortcomings in access to information and the continued absence of a Freedom of Information Law mandated by the 2014 constitution.

"There is a problem with access to information," he said, adding that the government is working on a new mechanism to provide journalists with verified information continuously.

Rashwan's remarks come amid a broader government push to reform Egypt's media sector following the restoration of the Ministry of State for Media in February 2026 and his appointment to lead it.

Since taking office, Rashwan has repeatedly described Egypt's media sector as facing a "major crisis" requiring urgent reform, while pledging to strengthen transparency, improve access to information, and address structural challenges affecting both state-owned and private media.

He said the priority is to activate constitutional guarantees regarding freedom of expression, publication, and the public's right to know.

The debate over media reform has increasingly focused on access to official information.

During meetings with editors-in-chief of national newspapers in May, media executives and editors urged the government to provide faster and more accurate information, arguing that journalists often struggle to obtain timely data, background information, and official comment.

Editors also called for stronger communication between government institutions and the press, expanded training programmes, and greater support for digital transformation.

Rashwan responded by pledging to improve the flow of official information to journalists and to strengthen coordination between state institutions and media organizations.

He has also emphasized the need for newspapers and broadcasters to adapt to a rapidly changing digital environment and compete more effectively with social media platforms, which he says have become a major source of unverified information and misinformation.