Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty during a meeting with Special Representative for the Gaza Strip Nikolay Mladenov on Wednesday, stressed the need for the national committee tasked with administering Gaza to begin operating and carrying out its mandate from within the enclave.
According to a statement issued by the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the call for local administration of Gaza under the special representative’s oversight is aimed at “strengthening the committee’s capacity” to assume its responsibilities in managing day-to-day affairs, in preparation for “the return of the Palestinian Authority to the full exercise of its prerogatives.”
The Egyptian foreign minister also underscored the importance of rapidly deploying an “international stabilization force” to oversee the ceasefire.
During the meeting, the minister reviewed Egypt’s efforts to train Palestinian police forces, and stressed the need for all parties to “fully commit to implementing all provisions of the second phase, including an Israeli withdrawal.”
This should subsequently make it possible to launch “early recovery projects across the entire Gaza Strip” and move toward “a reconstruction phase based on a comprehensive and coordinated approach,” he added.
The meeting also addressed the concerning situation in the occupied West Bank. Abdelatty condemned “the escalation of settler violence, the continued annexation policies and settlement expansion in violation of international law, the passage by the Knesset of a law authorising the execution of Palestinian prisoners, and the ongoing closure of Al-Aqsa Mosque.”
The minister stressed that these developments are contributing to heightened tensions and inflaming the situation on the ground, both in the West Bank and in Gaza, the statement added.
Mladenov commended “Egypt’s central role” in supporting regional security and stability, expressing appreciation for “Cairo’s efforts” to reduce tensions and “contain the escalation in Gaza and across the Middle East.”
Mladenov also stressed the importance of continuing coordination and consultation with Egypt in the period ahead in order to “advance the implementation of the commitments of the second phase of U.S. President Donald Trump’s plan in all its components.”
The talks come as Egypt works to sustain the momentum of the second phase amid persistent regional escalation, while promoting governance and security arrangements designed to support a transition toward recovery and reconstruction in Gaza.
AK/Sf/lb/as/APA