US considers international committee to manage Gaza, with Hamas’ help — report

During a recent visit to an unnamed Arab country, US officials discussed the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and raised the idea of establishing an international committee to manage affairs in the coastal enclave.

According to a Saturday report in the London-based, Arabic-language Al Hayat newspaper, the plan would require the Hamas terror group ruling Gaza to take a number of political steps to promote a US-led peace initiative.

The international committee would be bankrolled by the US as well as countries in Europe, according to Al Hayat.

The talks reportedly greatly angered Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, who was said to have no interest in returning to talks with the Israelis brokered by the Trump administration.

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While the report did not identify the Arab country that hosted the summit by name, initial assessments indicate it to have been Egypt, which has been in increased talks with Hamas and on Friday opened up its Rafah crossing with Gaza for the month of Ramadan.

Cairo has only sporadically opened its sole border crossing with the coastal enclave for short intervals over the past several years of soured relations with the Islamist group ruling Gaza.

The reported US proposal, which maintains Hamas as a player, comes amid near-daily criticism by officials in Washington of the terror group, which it has viewed as solely responsible for the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

In his most recent criticism on Friday, White House Special Envoy Jason Greenblatt blamed Hamas for inciting Palestinians to loot the Kerem Shalom Crossing with Israel.

On Wednesday, Greenblatt met in Qatar with its foreign minister to discuss relief for Gaza, a notable meeting with one of Hamas’ only allies.

On Friday, AP reported that Washington intends to release its peace plan in mid- to late-June, shortly after the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, although US officials cautioned that the timing could slip depending on developments in the region.

Yet any Palestinian willingness to even consider the plan would require conditions to improve and anger to subside considerably in the coming weeks — an unlikely scenario as the Palestinians say evidence of one-sided Trump giveaways to Israel continues to pile up.

Greenblatt’s meeting in Qatar came two days after he attended the dedication ceremony of the new US Embassy in Jerusalem on Monday.

That same day, 64 Palestinians were killed in border clashes that were part of violent protests for weeks. Almost all of the dead were members of Hamas, the terror group has acknowledged.

Since March 30, tens of thousands of Palestinians have taken part in weekly “March of Return” protests, which Israel says are orchestrated by  Hamas and used as cover for attempted attacks and breaches of the border fence.

The demonstrations were meant to end this week, culminating with the opening of the US embassy in Jerusalem, but Hamas leaders have said they want them to continue. About 1,000 protesters took part in demonstrations Friday.

The Palestinian deaths during Monday’s protests were met with international outrage and calls for an independent investigation of events. Hamas has subsequently admitted that 50 of the dead were members of the terror group. Three others were Islamic Jihad members.

On Friday, the UN’s Human Rights Council ordered a probe into the killings. Israel said it would not cooperate, and the US slammed the decision as a “shameful” day for human rights.