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EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell called on Arab countries to play a greater role in a future Palestinian government, as he set out proposals on Monday for how Gaza should be run after the Israel war.
Mr Borrell said it was vital to think about what happens after the war, before he embarked on a trip to Israel, the Palestinian territories and neighbouring countries this week.
The international community had failed "politically and morally" to bring a durable settlement to the long-running conflict between Palestinians and Israelis, and it was now time to try harder to find a two-state solution, he said.
After an EU foreign ministers' meeting in Brussels, he told reporters his proposals say "no" to three things and "yes" to three others.
Mr Borrell said no to any forced displacement of Palestinians from Gaza, to a permanent re-occupation by the Israeli military or any change to Gaza's size, and to a return of Hamas.
He said there should be "a Palestinian authority", which could be a "reinforced" version of the current Palestinian Authority that runs the West Bank, "with a legitimacy to be defined and decided upon by the Security Council".
The latest from the Israel-Gaza war - in pictures
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Palestinian children wounded in Israeli strikes amid the Israel-Gaza war wait for treatment at Nasser Hospital. Reuters -
Wounded Palestinians are assisted out of an ambulance to receive treatment at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis. Reuters -
Displaced Palestinian children gather for breakfast at a refugee camp in Rafah. AFP -
Children inside a damaged building following strikes on Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip. AFP -
People salvage belongings from a damaged building following strikes on Rafah. AFP -
A girl is assisted as Palestinians search for casualties after an Israeli strike on a house, in Rafa in the southern Gaza Strip. Reuters -
A Palestinian woman is evacuated at the site of an Israeli strike on a house, in Rafah. Reuters -
Police officers push back a counter protester who snatched a pro-Palestinian placard from a woman during a demonstration in solidarity with Gazans, London. Reuters -
Israeli soldiers inside the Gaza Strip, amid the continuing ground operation. Reuters -
An Israeli flag can be seen inside the Gaza Strip, from the Israeli side of the border. Reuters -
A Palestinian woman evacuates her home, heading to the southern Gaza Strip. EPA -
Thomas Hand, the father of Irish-Israeli Emily Hand, 8, who was announced dead following the October 7 attack, then later confirmed as one of the hostages held in Gaza, speaks from his hotel where he was evacuated to in Israel. Reuters -
A residential building on fire following Israeli air strikes in Gaza city. Bloomberg -
The rubble from destroyed residential buildings fills a street in Gaza city. Bloomberg -
A Palestinian child drinks water as they evacuate to the southern Gaza Strip. EPA -
Palestinians displaced from Gaza city head towards the south. Bloomberg -
Palestinians flee to the southern Gaza Strip. AP -
Palestinians flee to the southern Gaza Strip on Salah al-Din Street in Bureij, Gaza Strip. AP -
A group picture ahead of an emergency meeting of the Arab League and the Organisation of Islamic Co-operation in Riyadh. AFP
Mr Borrell said Arab countries would have to be more strongly involved in supporting this Palestinian Authority and that the EU should also be more involved in the region, particularly in building a Palestinian state.
"There will be no solution without strong commitment from the Arab states, and that cannot be limited to money. They can't just pay … for a physical reconstruction," he said.
"There has to be a political contribution to the construction of a Palestinian state."
While the EU has not been a major diplomatic player in the current crisis, it does have some influence in the region, not least as the biggest aid donor to the Palestinians.
"We have been far too absent," Mr Borrell said. "We have delegated the solution of this problem to the United States.
"But Europe must become more involved."
