Radio Cadena Agramonte emisiora de Camagüey
Cairo, Mar 4.- Egypt will present today an alternative plan for the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip without expelling the more than two million Palestinians who live there, as recently proposed by US President Donald Trump.
The initiative will be announced in the New Administrative Capital, located about 45 kilometers from Cairo, during an extraordinary meeting of the Arab League, which seeks a common position in defense of the Palestinian people and in rejection of Trump's proposal.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Badar Abadelatty announced on Sunday that the proposal is ready to be presented at the meeting.
The central axis of the project is the construction of the homes necessary to accommodate the population of the Strip in a period of no more than three years, an Egyptian source revealed this weekend to the Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper.
The UN estimates that more than 53 billion dollars will be needed to restore Gaza, after 15 months of attacks by the Israeli army, which dropped more than 100 thousand tons of explosives on the territory.
Prior to the meeting, Abadelatty spoke separately the day before with his counterparts from Palestine, Yemen, Tunisia, Bahrain and Jordan.
As part of the preparations, the Arab foreign ministers met behind closed doors to refine the plan that will be presented to the heads of state and government.
Al Ahram newspaper, which cited sources informed on the matter, noted that there are three key issues: Egypt's reconstruction plan, a unified Arab position against forced displacement and efforts to revive the peace process, leading to the creation of a Palestinian state.
The Egyptian initiative is practical and is gaining supporters in the area, a diplomat told the newspaper.
It consists of several phases, first immediate aid and shelter for Gazans, then clearing the area of the millions of tons of debris, and later rebuilding homes and infrastructure, it explained.
However, Al Ahram recognized regional concern about restarting the war, which is why several countries required guarantees not to waste the money.
Others have as their main concern a reform of the Palestinian National Authority.
However, the main point of friction is the governance of Gaza, because although there is consensus to reject the control of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), there are discrepancies about the force that will replace it.
Egypt proposed “a provisional administrative body of non-partisan Palestinian personalities”, although the process of formation of this institution was not clear.
The final declaration will not address the issue of security in the enclave explicitly either due to the differences between the Arab countries, because some governments want complete disarmament and others defend the training of the Palestinian police forces. (Text and photo: PL)
