The first meeting of the Palestinian committee taking interim charge of Gaza's day-to-day affairs was held on Friday in Egypt after a one-day delay caused by disagreements over the appointment of two members, sources familiar with the process told The National on Friday.
The delay was caused by issues specifically related to Sami Nasman, a former intelligence officer with the Palestinian Authority, and Rami Halas, who was set to be in charge of religious affairs and endowments, according to the sources.
It was not immediately clear what the points of contention are over these candidates or whether they are no longer being considered for committee membership.
Members of the committee, which is part of US President Donald Trump's 20-point peace plan for the war-battered enclave, had been expected to meet on Thursday to review its mandate, briefs and priorities. But some members were stuck in Gaza, unable to travel abroad for “security and logistical reasons”, the sources said.
Friday's meeting was attended by 12 committee members and overseen by Egyptian mediators, said the sources. It was not immediately clear what was discussed.
The committee is expected to be headed by Ali Shaath, a former deputy planning minister in the PA. The other committee members will be in charge of portfolios such as finance, water, local councils, the judiciary, security, health and agriculture.
Gaza's new governing body will not include Hamas members, and has to be vetted by the US and Israel. Mr Trump's administration says the president's plan has entered its second phase, even though some conditions of the first stage have not been met.
Members of a Board of Peace to oversee the second phase, which Mr Trump is expected to chair, have not yet been finalised. Neither has the list of nations that will contribute to an International Stabilisation Force to keep the peace in Gaza and train Palestinian security forces.
Some states view putting boots on the ground as a de facto occupation, or fear they may end up finding themselves in direct conflict with Hamas.
A US official said Mr Trump might announce members of the board at the World Economic Forum in Davos, in Switzerland, next week.
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is understood to have accepted a seat on the board. Israel has said Bulgarian diplomat Nickolay Mladenov, director general of the Anwar Gargash Diplomatic Academy in Abu Dhabi, will serve as director general of the board.
The technocratic committee, the Board of Peace and the International Stabilisation Force were all approved by a UN Security Council resolution adopted in November.
The second phase of President Trump's plan includes disarming Hamas and further Israeli withdrawal from Gaza as well as allowing sufficient humanitarian aid into the war-battered enclave.
The first phase enacted the ceasefire that went into effect in October, pausing the two-year war in Gaza that killed more than 70,000 Palestinians and destroyed most of the strip's built-up areas. The ceasefire remains fragile, with Israel killing more than 400 Palestinians since it went into effect on October 10.
During the initial phase Hamas released the remaining hostages held in Gaza, in exchange for the freedom of hundreds of Palestinians who had been detained in Israeli jails. Israel also pulled back its troops beyond a “yellow line” that left them in control of slightly more than 50 per cent of Gaza.
The Gaza war was sparked by a Hamas-led attack on southern Israel in which 1,200 people died and 250 were taken hostage.
