PA dispatches team to Cairo for talks on post-war management of Gaza
The Palestinian Authority dispatched a team of senior officials to Cairo today to join ongoing negotiations being led by Egypt to finalize details regarding who will control the Rafah Border Crossing once the ceasefire comes into place, Channel 12 reports.
Israel took over the Gaza side of the crossing, leading Egypt to close the gate until the PA could be the one controlling the other side.
PA President Mahmoud Abbas is insisting on PA control of the border crossing, which Israel to date has refused.
Abbas sent a document to the leaders of the US, Egypt, Qatar and the European Union that details the PA plan for the temporary administration of Gaza after the war.
The four-page document details the establishment of two working teams, one headed by the PA planning minister that will be tasked with the Strip’s reconstruction; and another led by the PA social development minister, which will be tasked with civil services and humanitarian aid to Palestinians, Channel 12 says.
The document stresses the PA’s willingness to cooperate with Arab states and other international allies to stabilize Gaza, while not specifying the division of labor between them.
The document drafted at the beginning of January also doesn’t specify who will be in charge of maintaining security in Gaza, including police and border patrol.
The document stresses that the PA will be the primary authority in the Gaza Strip. It also avoids offering any role to Hamas.
Much of the plan’s implementation will depend on Israeli acquiescence, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has insisted for months that he won’t allow the PA to gain a foothold in Gaza.
He has also rejected repeated calls from Israel’s security establishment and the international community to plan for the post-war management of Gaza, arguing that it cannot be done until Hamas is completely defeated.
His critics have warned that failure to plan for the so-called day after, will ensure Israel remains in a state of perpetual war.
No force has been able to fill vacuums that the Israel Defense Forces has temporarily created through its military operations, thus allowing Hamas forces to repeatedly return to places that the IDF had previously cleared.
With a ceasefire slated to enter place on Sunday, analysts fear Hamas will once again be able to reestablish its authority in Gaza, even if its military structure has been destroyed.