WORLD NEWS FOR MONTENEGRO DIASPORA
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AUTHOR:M.J. GDNUS
The United States and Israel have rejected an Arab plan for the post-war reconstruction of Gaza, which would allow two million Palestinians to remain on their land.
The plan was adopted by Arab leaders at a summit in Cairo yesterday and is fundamentally different from US President Donald Trump's plan, which involves the eviction of Palestinians from Gaza, reports the BBC.
The Palestinian Authority and Hamas welcomed the Arab plan, which envisages Gaza being temporarily administered by a committee of independent experts and the deployment of international peacekeeping forces, but the White House and the Israeli Foreign Ministry said they stood by Trump's vision.
The Arab plan for the reconstruction of Gaza, worth $53 billion, was presented by Egypt at an emergency summit of the Arab League on Tuesday. It "categorically rejects any displacement of the Palestinian people", which it qualifies as "a gross violation of international law, a crime against humanity and ethnic cleansing".
The plan envisages reconstruction in three phases over five years, during which some 1.5 million displaced Gazans would be resettled in 200,000 prefabricated housing units and 60,000 reconstructed homes.
The first phase, which would last six months and cost three billion dollars, would clear millions of tons of rubble and all unexploded ordnance.
The second phase, which would last two years and cost $20 billion, would rebuild housing and utilities, while an airport, two seaports and an industrial zone would be built during the third phase, which would last another two years and cost an additional $30 billion.
The Arab plan proposes that an “Administrative Committee”, made up of independent Palestinian technocrats, would run post-war Gaza during a transitional period, while work would be done “to strengthen the Palestinian Authority”.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said at the summit that he welcomed the Arab plan and called on Trump to support it, while Hamas said it appreciated “the Arab position that rejects attempts to displace our people.”
The Israeli Foreign Ministry quickly dismissed the Arab League statement, saying that its plan did not take into account the realities on the ground and was “rooted in outdated perspectives.”
“With President Trump’s idea, the people of Gaza have a free choice based on their free will, and that is what should be encouraged,” the statement said.
White House National Security Council spokesman Brian Hughes said the Arab plan “failed to take into account the fact that Gaza is currently uninhabitable and that people cannot live in a territory that is full of rubble and unexploded bombs.”
“President Trump remains committed to his vision of rebuilding Gaza free from Hamas. We look forward to further discussions on bringing peace and prosperity to the region,” Hughes said.
