TEL AVIV, October 31. /TASS/. The Israeli government has acknowledged the existence of a document from the country's intelligence services, which proposed the idea of relocating the 2.3 million Palestinian residents of the Gaza Strip to Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, The Times of Israel reported.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office called the document a "concept paper" that outlined only one of the hypothetical alternatives. The paper was dated October 13 and subsequently appeared in the Israeli media, the newspaper said.

It outlined the idea of moving Gaza residents to tent cities in the northern Sinai Peninsula, building permanent cities there and creating a humanitarian corridor. At the same time, the Israeli Intelligence Ministry proposed creating a special security zone inside Israel that would prevent Palestinian refugees from entering the country.

According to the newspaper, the document does not mention anything about what would happen on the territory of the Gaza Strip after the relocation of its residents. At the same time, the document’s authors called the scenario "the most desirable" for Israel's security. The Times of Israel’s source within the government said that no serious discussions about the document were taking place.

"The issue of the 'day after' has not been discussed in any official forum in Israel, which is focused at this time on destroying the governing and military capabilities of Hamas," the newspaper quoted a statement from the Israeli prime minister's office as saying.

Gaza refugees

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry told CNN on October 17 that Cairo is willing to allow humanitarian aid to reach the Gaza Strip's residents through the Rafah crossing on the Egypt-Gaza border, but has no intention of accepting refugees from Gaza. The Al-Arabi Al-Jadeed publication reported, citing sources, that Egypt is proposing to establish camps for them in the Palestinian town of Rafah. According to the newspaper, the camps will be located three kilometers from the Egyptian border and their activities will be controlled from Cairo. The Financial Times also reported that Egypt is actively resisting pressure from the European Union to accept Palestinian refugees.

Tensions flared up again in the Middle East on October 7 when militants from the radical Palestinian Hamas movement staged a surprise attack on Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip. Hamas described its attack as a response to the aggressive actions of Israeli authorities against the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem’s Old City. Israel has announced a total blockade of the Gaza Strip and has been delivering air strikes on Gaza as well as some districts in Lebanon and Syria. Clashes are also underway in the West Bank.