 "Palestinian Authority seeks greater role in post-war Gaza, despite limited inclusion in US plan: Report")
The Palestinian Authority is planning to assume a significant role in the governance of post-war Gaza, despite US President Donald Trump keeping such a possibility aside for now in his peace plan.
Hamas seized control of the coastal enclave from Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas in 2007. Trump’s proposal foresees an internationally supervised technocratic Palestinian committee taking over Gaza after the war. It requires the PA, which is based in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, to enact reforms before it can assume power.
Meanwhile, the Israeli Cabinet has approved the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire proposal, which Hamas agreed on Thursday. The news was confirmed by Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office on Friday. “The government has just now approved the framework for the release of all of the hostages — the living and the deceased,” Netanyahu’s office said.
Are PA officials unhappy?
While the PA has officially welcomed Trump’s plan, officials within the government are not happy with the part where the PA will have a minimal role in the government. An alternative plan drawn up by Saudi Arabia and France had emphasised its leading role in Gaza.
Three Palestinian officials have told Reuters that they expect the PA to be deeply involved in governing Gaza. They backed their demand by saying that the government stepped in at a crucial time after the Hamas takeover and paid the
Three senior Palestinian officials said they still expect the PA to be deeply involved in Gaza. They noted the role it has played in the enclave since the Hamas takeover, paying salaries to tens of thousands of civil servants and overseeing essential services, including education and Gaza’s electricity supply.
Abbas has already declared his commitment to tackling corruption, holding elections, and other reforms requested by Western nations, helping to convince several of them to recognise Palestine in recent weeks.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsAbbas prepares Gaza plan
Meanwhile, Mohammad Mustafa, the Prime Minister of Palestine, has been developing reconstruction plans since taking office 18 months ago.
With Egypt’s support, he has scheduled a reconstruction conference to take place a month after the ceasefire.
Updated World Bank estimates put reconstruction costs for Gaza at $80 billion, up from $53 billion last October, he said. That’s four times the combined GDP of the West Bank and Gaza Strip in 2022, according to the multilateral lender.
With inputs from Reuters
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