European leaders are intensifying efforts to contribute towards Gaza’s reconstruction by mobilising funds and supplying financial, security and governance expertise.
The UK, France, Germany and the Netherlands will join Egypt to co-host a Gaza reconstruction summit in Cairo next month.
One of the conference's main goals is to attract private sector investment and expertise – with tens of billions required to rebuild the strip – and to assess recovery plans that have been drawn up in the last two years of war.
The summit was proposed by the Egyptian government and will be guided by US President Donald Trump’s 20-point peace plan for Gaza.
However, in a departure from the terms of the US-brokered ceasefire agreement, the Palestinian Authority will be given a key voice and role in the recovery efforts.
Inputs have also been drawn from the Arab League’s reconstruction plan, which estimated that Gaza’s reconstruction required a budget of $53 billion, and the framework that emerged from the Two-State Solution conference hosted by France and Saudi Arabia in July.
The UK could lead the effort's financial stream, drawing on expertise from London's banking sector, according to a person familiar with the discussions, who added that the Britain has for long aimed to play a role as convener in the reconstruction.
France has said it will be involved in humanitarian and security efforts, such as rebuilding hospitals, and that it will lead the formation of an international peacekeeping force.
“We will play our role in security questions. We will take charge of this part and we've already deployed planning teams alongside the Americans,” French President Emmanuel Macron told reporters after the signing of the peace agreement between Israel and Hamas in Sharm El Sheikh.
Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said Germany is ready to “provide humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip immediately”, in Paris on Thursday, but did not comment on a larger role.
Italy is keen to fund health infrastructure, Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said in Paris.
“Our companies are ready,” Mr Tajani said. “I told all the ministers that we want to be major players – beyond security – also in reconstruction.”
The Cairo summit next month follows a three-day conference this week co-hosted by Egypt, Palestine and the UK at Wilton Park, the Foreign Office retreat that hosts informal dialogues between international delegations.
Palestinian roles
The US-brokered peace plan allows for the Palestinian Authority to have a role in Gaza once it has undergone reforms.
But the war has led to consensus that any future reconstruction of Gaza would need to be guided by Palestinians themselves, as opposed to the Gaza Riviera plan proposed by Mr Trump earlier this year, which called for all residents to leave the enclave.
Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa said he hoped the PA would be “fully operational in Gaza” within a year, as he pitched a $65 billion, five-year reconstruction plan to the UN on Thursday.
“Our talks this week have made significant progress in identifying ways to create sustainable private finance, while putting Palestinians at the front and centre of the recovery and reconstruction efforts,” the co-hosts of the Wilton Park conference in the UK said in a statement.
The PA can count on financial support from the EU, which is its largest donor. The EU also trains Palestinian border police at the Rafah crossing as well as Palestinian security officials and judges. “There is a lot, really to build on, and a lot that is absolutely crucial and relevant for the next phases of what we're going to do,” a senior EU diplomat said.
Hailing co-operation
Europe is likely to partially finance the reconstruction of Gaza in co-operation with Gulf states, the diplomat added. “There are plenty of indications that Gulf countries intend to do that, which is very welcome – which we applaud,” they said.
Various recovery plans for Gaza were proposed during the two-year conflict, including Palestine Emerging, which is led by the Palestinian engineer Shireen Shelleh in collaboration with Portland Trust.
That plan includes a spatial study of Gaza, identifying the best options for rebuilding various sectors including health care and telecoms, and has been backed by Palestinian business people in the diaspora.
Wilton Park
There was a “healthy degree of scepticism” towards President Trump’s 20-point peace plan at the Wilton Park discussions, a person present at the meetings said, with participants acknowledging the importance of including Palestinians in the efforts.
France and Britain, in co-ordination with the US, are working to finalise a UN Security Council resolution in the coming days that would lay the foundation for a future international force in Gaza.
French Foreign Ministry representative Pascal Confavreux said such a force needed a UN mandate to provide a strong foundation in international law and ease the process of getting potential contributions from countries.
“France is working closely with its partners on the establishment of such an international mission, which must be formalised through the adoption of a UN Security Council resolution,” Mr Confavreux said.
“Discussions, notably with the Americans and British, are continuing to propose this resolution in the coming days.”
