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Right now in Dubai, pretty much every government in the world is debating what kind of energy we will all be using in just 25 years’ time, which will influence the climate we live in and the air we breathe.

A very early draft version of the final treaty released today moots a plan to “phase out fossil fuels” – but radically different ideas are on the table.

The text will morph as negotiators thrash it out over the next few weeks, and will fight right down to the wire.

Here are a few small, key words that are fuelling major tensions, and could shape what kind of world we live in.

Fossil fuels: to ‘phase out’, or ‘phase down’ – that is the question

Small, fragile economies that are already being battered by climate change want a “phase out of fossil fuels”.

This is the most ambitious option on the table, and the previous 27 COP summits have so far barely addressed a reduction on fossil fuels.

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At COP26 in Glasgow, countries agreed to “phase down coal”, and at COP27 in Egypt last year about 80 countries lobbied to expand that to all fossil fuels, but were defeated.

“Phase out” may morph into “phase down”, which is regarded a softer version.

Environmentalists want a deadline including those phrases, so governments can be held accountable on their progress.

There are lots of other words in the mix that soften this phase out/phase down language.

‘Just’

Vulnerable nations in particular are pushing for a “just” phase out, in the interests of fairness.

“Climate justice” advocates the idea that developed countries like the UK, USA and Norway have already got rich from fossil fuels, and so ought to ditch them faster than developing nations like Nigeria or South Africa, which have less cash and fewer options for their economic development.

Unabated

The UK, US and the 27-strong EU bloc are among those lobbying for a phase out of “unabated” fossil fuels – providing much more wiggle room.

Unabated coal, oil or gas power is when these fossil fuels are burned without the technology to capture their emissions.

That is how virtually every power plant or emitting factory in the world runs at the moment, as the technology exists but has proved extremely difficult to get off the ground.

Campaigners call it a “fairytale solution”.

The scientific consensus assimilated by IPCC scientists, says that without abatement, limiting warming to agreed levels means by 2050, global coal use must fall 100%, oil by 60% and gas 70%, compared with 2019 levels.

These findings were signed off by all governments in the world.

Demand for all three is still rising, though peak demand is in sight by 2030. Residual emissions need “abating”, but this is supposed to be reserved only as a last resort, for industries like aviation that are as yet impossible to get off fossil fuels.

Activists protest against polluting countries during the United Nations Climate Change Conference COP28 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, December 5, 2023. REUTERS/Amr Alfiky

CCUS, CDR

These are technologies that “abate” emissions or suck them from the air.

CCUS stands for “carbon capture, usage and storage” and refers to a range of different equipments that prevent carbon dioxide from things like power plants or manufacturing facilities from reaching the atmosphere, by capturing it from the source.

It is then “used” in processes like injecting it back into oil wells to extract further oil, or “stored” underground in rock or empty gas fields, for example.

Carbon dioxide removals sucks the greenhouse gas from the atmosphere, as opposed to the source.

Major oil producers like Saudi Arabia lobby hard for these solutions, which in theory would allow them to continue producing at the same volumes for years to come.

Professor Johan Rockström, who runs Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and is a member of the Climate Crisis Advisory Group, said: “To be clear, CDR needs to be used as an additionality. It cannot be used as a way of moving slow on oil and gas.”

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What is carbon capture?

Predominantly

The EU wants – as well as a phase out of “unabated” fossil fuels – an energy sector “predominantly free of
fossil fuels well ahead of 2050″.

Again, “predominantly” allows for some room to manoeuvre, so this word may pop up in different places in subsequent versions.

Those outside the world of COP may be raising their eyebrows to read that counties could spend hours fighting over a word like “predominantly”.

A sceptical interpretation of this is that it allows countries to get away with doing less – these sceptics might be right.

But it’s at least a testament to the fact these negotiations – flawed though the process is – matter; otherwise, countries wouldn’t fight so hard over them.

For example, if you’re from low-lying, island nation Palau, these decisions influence how quickly you lose swathes of your land underwater.

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What you need to know about Donald Trump’s Gaza plan

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What you need to know about Donald Trump's Gaza plan

Donald Trump’s announcement that he wants to “develop” Gaza and turn it into the “Riviera of the Middle East” has been described as “absurd” and “entirely unrealistic”.

During a joint news conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu late on Tuesday, Mr Trump proposed that the two million people living in Gaza could be moved to Jordan, Egypt – and beyond.

Gazans hit back at Trump’s plan; US latest

While it is not clear how Gaza will be rebuilt when the current conflict between Hamas and Israel ends – it is equally uncertain how the US would come to “own” Gaza, resettle its population, and redevelop the land.

Trucks carrying aid arrive in Rafah.
Pic: Reuters
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Destroyed buildings in Rafah, Gaza. Pic: Reuters

What did Trump say about the Gaza Strip?

Mr Trump described Gaza as a “demolition site” where “virtually every building is down”.

Laying out his idea of what would happen beyond an Israel-Hamas ceasefire, he proposed: “The US will take over the Gaza Strip and we will do a job with it too.”

He said America would be “responsible for dismantling all of the dangerous unexploded bombs and other weapons on the site”, before it would “get rid of the destroyed buildings”, and “level it out”.

A Palestinian man walks through the ruins of his house where he sets up a shelter, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip February 4, 2025. REUTERS/Hatem Khaled     TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
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The ruins of a house in Rafah, Gaza. Pic: Reuters

He envisioned an “economic development”, which he described as the “Riveria of the Middle East” – that would create thousands and thousands of jobs”.

“Everybody I’ve spoken to loves the idea of the United States owning that piece of land, developing and creating thousands of jobs,” he added.

The White House has described the plan as “out-of-the-box” and “visionary”.

What about the population?

Gaza’s two million people would not return to their territory under Mr Trump’s plans.

Instead, he suggested building “various domains” for them to “permanently… live out their lives in peace and harmony instead of having to go back and do it again”.

This could take the form of “numerous sites” or “one large site”, he added.

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The only locations he mentioned by name were Jordan and Egypt, which he said, despite their leaders consistently refusing to resettle more Palestinian refugees, would “give us the kind of land we need to get this done”.

He described the new sites as a “beautiful area to resettle people, permanently in nice homes, where they can be happy and not shot… and killed… like what’s happening in Gaza”.

He said “neighbouring countries of great wealth” could finance them – without stipulating to what extent this would involve the US.

There were no details on whether the plans change the current US position of a two-state solution for the Israeli and Palestinian people.

A refugee camp in southern Gaza for displaced Palestinians. Pic: AP
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A refugee camp in southern Gaza for displaced Palestinians. Pic: AP

Who controls Gaza – and who has occupied it in the past?

Gaza has been under the control of Hamas since 2007 – after it dominated the 2006 elections and subsequent violent clashes with fellow Palestinian group Fatah.

The area made up of Gaza, Israel, and the West Bank has a long and complicated history – with both Israel and Palestinians laying claim to various parts of it.

In 1917, the British took control of what was then known as Palestine from the Ottoman Empire.

Under the Balfour Declaration, they promised to create a Jewish homeland there.

Jewish people then began migrating to the region in large numbers – accelerated by the threat of Nazism in Europe and the Second World War, which created tension with the Palestinian people already living there.

When the United Nations was set up after the war in 1947, it proposed a partition plan – whereby roughly 45% of the land would belong to the Palestinian people and 55% to Jewish people. Jerusalem, which has particular sensitivities because of its religious significance to both sides, was proposed as a separate international territory.

This plan was never actioned – and instead – the state of Israel was declared in 1948.

The Arab-Israeli war that broke out immediately after the declaration saw 750,000 Palestinian people forced from their homes in what was known as the Nakba – or “catastrophe” in English. They were given refugee status by the UN and fled to neighbouring countries.

The Palestinians retained control of two small areas – what we now know as Gaza and the West Bank.

During the Six-Day War in 1967, Israel occupied Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem. They also took control of the Golan Heights, an area belonging to Syria. This saw hundreds of thousands more Palestinians forced from their homes.

During his first presidency, Donald Trump recognised Israel’s control of the Golan Heights.

Different groups have fought for control of Gaza since then – including Hamas and the Palestinian Authority.

There was hope for a two-state solution – one Israel and one Palestine – when their leaders signed the Oslo Accords committing to peace in the region within five years.

This never materialised, however, and Gaza has become increasingly cut off from outside resources.

The UN runs refugee camps for millions of displaced Palestinians – both inside Gaza and the West Bank – and in the neighbouring countries of Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria.

Before the 2023 war broke out between Israel and Hamas, tensions were high among Palestinian communities as Israel continued to expand settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

Trump Gaza plan ‘absurd’ and US has ‘no authority’

Egypt, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia, which as fellow Arab nations support the Palestinian cause, immediately rejected Mr Trump’s ideas.

They, along with Syria and Lebanon, are already struggling to support millions of displaced Palestinians.

Hamas described the proposals as “ridiculous and absurd” in a statement from one of its officials Sami Abu Zuhri.

The Palestinian Liberation Organisation reiterated its support for a two-state solution.

Sky News Middle East correspondent Alistair Bunkall said the plans have left politicians and diplomats across the region “speechless”.

“It’s entirely unrealistic for so many reasons,” he says.

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Palestinians react to Trump’s Gaza comments

Forcing Palestinians from Gaza would breach their right under international law to self-determination – and would constitute ethnic cleansing, he adds.

It would also, according to the chair of the UK’s Defence Select Committee, Conservative MP Tobias Ellwood, require “a minimum of 50,000” US troops in the region for several years.

This would prove a “massive logistical challenge”, as US military resources in other parts of the world have to be redirected there.

It is also out of step with Mr Trump’s previous indications he wants to scale back US involvement in the Middle East – and adopt a more protectionist foreign policy.

Many Gazans have endured horrendous living conditions in the hope Gaza will be rebuilt as part of an independent Palestinian state.

As such, most would not want to leave, Bunkall says, adding: “Ask any Gazan and they will tell you it is their home, however hellish.”

The international community has been involved in the rebuilding of war-torn countries throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. In this sense, the US could be mandated as a “reconstruction power” in Gaza.

However, in cases such as post-Second World War Germany or Japan – allies handed back the territory after rebuilding – not resettled their residents elsewhere.

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Manhunt after shooting at Brussels underground station

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Manhunt after shooting at Brussels underground station

Belgian police have launched a manhunt after a shooting near an underground station in the capital.

It happened outside Clemenceau metro station in Brussels at around 6.15am local time on Wednesday, according to local media reports.

Security personnel secure the area at the Clemenceau metro station
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Pic: Reuters

Pic: Reuters
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Pic: Reuters

Clemenceau, Trone and Gare de l’Ouest underground stations are closed to the public as police search for the perpetrators in the tunnels of the city’s metro system, The Brussels Times reported.

CCTV footage showed two people walking into the station and opening fire, according to the Reuters news agency. It said it could not immediately verify the images.

Security personnel secure the area at the Clemenceau metro station.
Pic:Reuters
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Pic: Reuters

Members of the forensic police work at the Clemenceau metro station.
Pic: Reuters
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Pic: Reuters

“The suspects fled in the direction of the metro station and may still be in the tunnel between the Clemenceau and Midi stations,” a police spokesperson told Belga News Agency.

“The Brussels Midi police and the federal railway police are searching the area. No one was injured in the shooting.”

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Images showed emergency services, including firefighters and paramedics, at the scene and a police cordon in place.

Several tram and metro lines have also been shut on the heavily used underground system.

Clemenceau metro station is near Brussels-Midi Station – the arrival point for Eurostar trains from London and Paris.

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Trump says US will take over Gaza and all Palestinians should relocate

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Trump says US will take over Gaza and all Palestinians should relocate

The US will take over Gaza and “own it”, Donald Trump has said.

Speaking alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House, he said the two million Palestinian people living in the territory, which he described as a “demolition site”, would go to “various domains”.

Asked about deploying US troops to fill a potential security vacuum, the president replied: “We’ll do what is necessary.”

Expanding on plans for the territory, he said the US would “develop it, create thousands and thousands of jobs” and turn it into “something the entire Middle East can be very proud of”.

Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu during a news conference in the East Room of the White House. Pic: AP
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Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu during a news conference in the East Room of the White House. Pic: AP

The president reiterated his suggestion from 25 January that Palestinians could be relocated to Egypt and Jordan – something both countries, other Arab nations including Saudi Arabia, and Palestinian leaders, have rejected.

Palestinians in Gaza could go to countries beyond Jordan and Egypt too, he said.

Follow latest: Trump accused of ‘openly calling for ethnic cleansing’

Asked whether he thought Egypt and Jordan would accept Palestinians, he said he believed they would.

But, he added: “I hope we could do something where they wouldn’t want to go back. Who would want to go back?

“They’ve experienced nothing but death and destruction.”

Saudi Arabia immediately responded, stressing its rejection of attempts to displace Palestinians from Gaza, and insisted it would not establish relations with Israel without a Palestinian state.

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Asked on what authority the US could take control of Gaza, Mr Trump told reporters he sees a “long term ownership position” which would, he claimed, bring stability to that part of the Middle East.

“This was not a decision made lightly,” he said.

“Everybody I’ve spoken to loves the idea of the United States owning that piece of land, developing and creating thousands of jobs.”

It would be the “Riviera of the Middle East”.

He continued: “I’ve studied it. I’ve studied this very closely over a lot of months, and I’ve seen it from every different angle.”

He does not believe Palestinians should return to Gaza because it is a “guarantee that they’re going to end up dying”.

He talked about finding a “beautiful area to resettle people, permanently, in nice homes where they can be happy and not be shot and not be killed and not be knifed to death like what’s happening in Gaza”.

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Gazans return home to rubble

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The war, triggered by Hamas carrying out a massacre of 1,200 people and taking 250 others hostage during the 7 October 2023 attacks in Israel, has temporarily stopped since the long-sought ceasefire deal came into effect on 19 January.

More than 47,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since Hamas’s attack, according to local authorities.

Mr Netanyahu, the first world leader to meet Mr Trump since the pro-Israel president’s return to the White House, sat beside the Republican as he answered questions from the press.

Trump relocation call will horrify Palestinians

President Trump has a habit of saying the quiet stuff out loud. And the proud global disrupter did just that today with his breathtaking announcement. Critics will say he is either ignoring history, is indifferent to it or is ignorant of it.

But if President Trump is to be taken at face value then he is set to repeat history – the history of American occupation of the Middle East and the history of Palestinian displacement.

It would end the prospect of a two-state solution – Israelis and Palestinians living side by side on the same land. It could also wreck any prospects of diplomatic normalisation between Israel and Gulf Arab states.

Nations like Saudi Arabia wouldn’t stand for such a permanent resettlement and probably wouldn’t trust any resettlement presented as ‘temporary’ – which this is conspicuously not.

The two countries being told to take the people of Gaza – Egypt and Jordan – have firmly refused to do so. The American president seems convinced they will roll over.

Maybe though this is part of Trump’s art of the deal: to suggest something, then not follow through – and present that as a concession down the line.

There’s something else too.

Even if Israeli PM Netanyahu believes it’s a plan that can’t work and could further the cries of ethnic cleansing (it’s notable that he didn’t add his overt support to it alongside Trump) the president’s plan will certainly help him domestically where his future is fragile.

Netanyahu can dangle ‘permanent relocation’ in front of the real hardliners in his government who keep him in power.

Whatever is at play here, the announcement today will horrify Palestinians and it will delight and embolden the hardline elements of Israeli society who have dreamt of a Jewish state free of Palestinians.

‘Plans change with time’

The US president hinted he would seek an independent Palestinian state as part of a broader two-state solution to the decades-long Israel-Palestine conflict.

“Well, a lot of plans change with time,” he told reporters when he was asked if he was still committed to a plan similar to the one he spelled out in 2020 that described a possible Palestinian state.

That plan proposed a series of Palestinian enclaves surrounded by an enlarged Israel, did not have the Palestinian capital in East Jerusalem, but suggested a Palestinian capital on the outskirts of the city.

“A lot of death has occurred since I left and now came back. Now we are faced with a situation that’s different – in some ways better and in some ways worse. But we are faced with a very complex and difficult situation that we’ll solve,” he said.

On the likelihood of getting a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, Mr Trump said: “We are dealing with a lot of people, and we have steps to go yet, as you know, and maybe those steps go forward, and maybe they don’t.

“We’re dealing with a very complex group of people, situation and people, but we have the right man. We have the right leader of Israel. He’s done a great job.”

Mr Trump was also asked whether he should get the Nobel Peace Prize.

He said: “They will never give me a Nobel Peace Prize. It’s too bad. I deserve it, but they will never give it to me.”

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