Key points
- The summit was held in Cairo on Tuesday
- Regional leaders and the UN chief attended the summit
- President Mahmoud Abbas, Hamas welcome the reconstruction plan
ISLAMABAD: Arab leaders have endorsed an Egyptian plan for the reconstruction of war-shattered Gaza that would allow its residents to remain in the territory, Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi has said.
According to Al-Jazeera, at the meeting in Cairo on Tuesday, the regional leaders endorsed the counterproposal to US President Donald Trump’s plan to expel Gaza’s 2.3 million residents and redevelop the Palestinian territory.
Regional leaders and United Nations Secretary-General Antonios Guterres also attended the summit.
A longer reconstruction phase
Egypt’s plan includes an initial recovery phase aimed at de-mining the territory and providing temporary housing, followed by a longer reconstruction phase focused on rebuilding essential infrastructure, Al-Jazeera cited different media reports.
El-Sisi stated Egypt had worked in cooperation with Palestinians on creating an administrative committee of independent, professional Palestinian technocrats entrusted with the governance of Gaza.
The committee would be responsible for the oversight of humanitarian aid and managing the Gaza Strip’s affairs for a temporary period, in preparation for the return of the Palestinian Authority (PA), Al-Jazeera cited him as saying.
PA and Hamas
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said that he welcomed the Egyptian idea and urged Trump to support such a plan that would not involve displacing Palestinians.
AFP reported that Hamas also welcomed the summit’s plan and the proposed formation of a temporary committee “to oversee relief efforts, reconstruction, and governance.”
Earlier, Palestinians, Arab states, and many European governments have rejected Trump’s proposal for US control of Gaza, opposing any efforts to expel its people.
