RAMALLAH, WEST BANK // The Palestinian unity government will hold its first cabinet meeting in Gaza this week, a key step towards taking charge of reconstruction efforts in the war-battered territory, a senior official said on Monday.
The cabinet will convene on Thursday, said deputy prime minister Mohammed Mustafa, three days before an international pledging conference where the Palestinian government will seek $4 billion (Dh14.7bn) in aid for Gaza, hit hard in a 50-day war this summer between Israel and the Islamic militant group Hamas.
Donor countries view the unity government of independent experts, led by western-backed Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas, as key to any reconstruction plans. Hamas, which is shunned as a terrorist group by the international community, has governed Gaza for the past seven years.
The purpose of the Gaza meeting is to “see the situation on the ground and to send a message to the donors’ conference that the government is ready to start reconstruction soon,” said Mr Mustafa.
Hamas seized Gaza from Abbas in 2007, prompting a border closure of Gaza by Israel and Egypt, enforced to varying degrees over the past seven years. After Egypt tightened the closure last year and stepped up its destruction of cross-border smuggling tunnels, Hamas began experiencing severe financial difficulties that made it increasingly difficult for the group to govern.
Earlier this year, Hamas agreed to hand over authority to a temporary unity government reporting to the West Bank-based Mr Abbas, though it refused to disband its security forces. Other key issues remained unresolved, including the fate of more than 40,000 employees hired by Hamas after 2007. The unity government has not yet started operating in Gaza.
Mr Mustafa said that’s about to change. “The government is for both the West Bank and Gaza, and it’s time to start operating in Gaza despite the difficulties,” he said.
* Associated Press