CAIRO: United Nations Secretary-General on Tuesday called for the resumption of ceasefire negotiations to ensure the release of captives and detainees, and the removal of all obstacles affecting the delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza.
“Humanitarian aid is not negotiable, it must flow without impediment,” Antonio Guterres said while addressing the Cairo summit on Tuesday.
The Arab leaders have convened in Cairo to discuss a reconstruction plan for war-torn Gaza to counter US President Donald Trump’s proposal to take over the territory and relocate its Palestinian inhabitants.
The UN chief has also addressed the “alarming” situation in the occupied West Bank, where Israel has been conducting deadly raids for six weeks now.
“Over 40,000 Palestinians have been forcibly displaced in the last months, the largest displacement in the West Bank in decades,” Guterres said.
“Meanwhile, demolitions, evictions, and settlement expansions with settler violence on the rise. All of this is further weakening the Palestinian Authority at a time when its role is more crucial than ever, he added, calling for “urgent de-escalation.
“Unilateral actions including settlement expansion and threats of annexation must stop. The attacks and mounting violence must end. Israel as the occupying power must comply with all its obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law, and the Palestinian Authority must be supported to govern effectively and to do so in compliance with its own obligations under international law,” he said.
The UN chief said the Palestinian people must have the right to govern themselves, to chart their own future, and to live on their land in freedom and security.
No peace by force
Egypt’s President El-Sisi in his remarks said that peace cannot be maintained by force. “We will also be providing security training to security officials in Gaza,” he said.
“Humanity lost its virtue in Gaza,” he said. “The people in Gaza who lost loved ones, those who were widowed orphaned are looking up to you to restore hope and last and permanent peace.”
El-Sisi added that the Gaza plan would ensure Palestinians “remain on their land”. The president said he was certain that US President Donald Trump would be able to achieve peace on what he referred to as the Palestinian issue.
He said Egypt would be hosting a conference for Gaza reconstruction next month.
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Egypt’s plans to rebuild the Gaza Strip, involve removing unexploded ordnance, clearing debris, and constructing green housing.
As part of the reconstruction effort, hundreds of thousands of temporary housing units would be set up to accommodate Gaza’s population during the rebuilding process.
The rubble would be recycled, with some of it used as infill to expand the land along Gaza’s Mediterranean coast.
Hamas urges Arab nations to stop Israel’s aggressive policy in Gaza
Meanwhile Hamas yesterday called on Arab countries to take practical steps to stop Israel’s starvation policy in Gaza.
“We appreciate the declared Arab and international positions rejecting the starvation policy practiced by the (Israeli) occupation against our people in the Gaza Strip,” said Hazem Qassem, a Hamas spokesman.
“We call on Egypt and the Arab system to take practical steps to prevent the [Israeli] occupation from continuing the starvation policy that paves the way for its plan to displace our people in the Gaza Strip and poses a threat to Arab national security,” he added.
Israel ready for the second phase of Gaza ceasefire
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said on Tuesday Israel was ready to proceed to the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire deal, as long as Hamas was ready to release more of the 59 hostages it is still holding.
“We are ready to continue to phase two,” Saar told reporters in Jerusalem as Arab leaders prepared to meet in Cairo to discuss a plan for ending the war permanently.
“But in order to extend the time or the framework, we need an agreement to release more hostages,” he said.
