• Egypt floats a Gaza plan: Egypt is developing a plan to rebuild Gaza without forcing Palestinians out of the strip. Its state-run newspaper said the proposal calls for establishing “secure areas” within Gaza where Palestinians can live initially while Egyptian and international construction firms rehabilitate the strip’s infrastructure. 
  • Related Monitor story: Some in the Arab world consider a U.S. plan to move residents out of Gaza a war crime, and say that it could lead to war.
• Social Security head resigns: Michelle King, the Social Security Administration’s acting commissioner, stepped down from her role at the agency Feb. 17 over Department of Government Efficiency requests to access Social Security recipient information, according to two people familiar with the official’s departure.
• Hamas accelerates hostage releases: A senior leader said the militant group will release six living Israeli hostages Feb. 22 and the bodies of four others Feb. 20.
• All passengers survive Toronto crash: All but two of the 21 people injured on the Feb. 17 flight have been released from hospitals, the airport CEO said.
  • Related Monitor story: Rising safety is the historical trend in aviation. But is that changing in the U.S.?

The 80-year postwar partnership of the United States and Europe has certainly seen its choppy moments. Much like family spats, however, they passed. This time is different, say European leaders. What they see is a potentially fundamental shift, driven by diverging values and U.S. disregard for their interests.

The growing tensions with the United States have stunned Europe, which is now watching from the sidelines as the Trump administration reaches out to Russia about Ukraine. A central concern is whether the U.S. is removing European security from its list of priorities.

A phone call last week that spiked European alarm buoyed Russians. President Donald Trump was talking directly to their president, Vladimir Putin, who has largely been ostracized on the world stage. From the Russian point of view, it’s right that their country should be able to come in from the cold and see full bilateral diplomatic relations restored.

Presidential power has steadily expanded over the past century. As the U.S. became a superpower in a fast-paced, globalized world, Congress and the judiciary willingly delegated this power. Under the Trump administration, the Supreme Court will face questions about the limits of that expansion.

The Palisades and Eaton fires, which killed at least 28 people, also destroyed more than 16,000 structures around the Los Angeles area. One analysis estimates insured losses at $75 billion, raising questions about the sustainability of America’s insurance industry. We spoke to Nick Mott, whose book, “This Is Wildfire,” examines the history of humanity’s engagement with fire-prone spaces. Mr. Mott addresses innovative ways – including public-private partnerships – to mitigate future losses of both life and property. “This is a collective problem,” he says, “that demands collective solutions.”

And here’s another LA story. How do you calibrate an Oscars ceremony after a natural disaster? Other award shows have balanced industry celebration with compassion. The Oscars tend to indulge in ostentatious glitz, so the show risks coming across as Hollywood royalty insulated in its own Versailles while thousands remain displaced. Still, if the ceremony focuses on its greater community in a genuine way, it could connect with everyday Americans in a way that it hasn’t in a while.

For nearly two decades, the people in Gaza have not been able to vote for new leaders. They were stuck with Hamas. Yet as they return to war-battered communities under a month-old ceasefire with Israel, many are voicing strong views on Gaza’s future – as if an election were nigh.

At present, that hope is a distant one. Instead, from Washington to Cairo, international actors are debating Gaza’s future – without much input from the territory’s 2.1 million inhabitants.

So exactly what do these Palestinians really want? Based on a survey in early January, they are holding on to their religious identity, as well as to an attachment to the land and Palestinian unity. With Palestinians having little faith in their past or present leader – only a fifth now support Hamas – that religious identity may open a door for dialogue and direction.

About half expect peace to prevail, while 44% expect a long-term truce. The survey, conducted for the research group Artis International and Oxford University, tried to gauge how the people’s “spiritual strength” might influence potential compromises with Israel.

Although people in Gaza view the conflict with Israel in religious terms, that belief “does not necessarily imply intolerance of other groups,” wrote two researchers about the survey, Scott Atran and Ángel Gómez, in Foreign Affairs.

They cited a previous survey in which Palestinian Muslim youths appeared to place much greater value on the lives of Palestinians than on those of Jewish Israelis. “Yet when they were asked to take the viewpoint of Allah (God), they valued the two more equally,” they wrote.

Injecting more religion into Middle East conflicts may seem fraught. Yet during the height of Hamas-Israel fighting last year, Gaza’s most prominent Muslim scholar, Salman Al-Dayah, issued an edict urging Hamas to “be humble” and “fear Allah” for, among other issues, using civilians as human shields. He stated the people had an increasing aversion to Islam because “of the religious who caused this calamity.”

For both Israelis and Palestinians, “Faith very similarly informs rhetoric, convictions, and actions,” wrote Michal Bar-Asher Siegal, a professor of rabbinic Judaism at Ben-Gurion University, in The Jerusalem Post.  “We need to talk much more about God,” especially for a society “striving to discern and live according to what it believes God wants from it.”

“We need to critically examine how the concept of God is constructed in different cultures and explore the ways in which religious leaders use sacred texts to shape ideologies and influence communities.” Such understanding, she added, can then foster “meaningful dialogue between diverse communities.”

Perhaps for people in Gaza, a self-reflection about their religious identity has begun. As big powers plot Gaza’s next steps, they might want to check first with the territory’s residents.