Today's Edition
ROME (Reuters)
The foreign ministers of France, Germany, Italy and Britain said on Saturday they supported an Arab-backed plan for the reconstruction of Gaza that would cost $53 billion and avoid displacing Palestinians from the enclave.
"The plan shows a realistic path to the reconstruction of Gaza and promises - if implemented - swift and sustainable improvement of the catastrophic living conditions for the Palestinians living in Gaza," the ministers said in a joint statement.
The plan was drawn up by Egypt and adopted by Arab leaders on Tuesday.
The Egyptian proposal envisages the creation of an administrative committee of independent, professional Palestinian technocrats entrusted with the governance of Gaza after the end of the war in Gaza.
The committee would be responsible for the oversight of humanitarian aid and managing the Strip's affairs for a temporary period under the supervision of the Palestinian Authority.
The statement issued by the four European countries on Saturday said they were "committed to working with the Arab initiative," and they appreciated the "important signal" the Arab states had sent by developing it.
