Fatah, the main party in the Palestinian Authority, and Hamas signed a document agreeing to form a joint committee to oversee the post-war Gaza Strip, according to the Qatari-funded news site Al-Araby Al-Jadeed.
Tuesday morning, the news site published a copy of the document it claims was signed to establish the "Community Support Committee for Administration of Gaza." This was following several discussions held between Fatah and Hamas representatives in Cairo last week.
The document would still require the approval of Palestinian Authority Chairman and President Mahmoud Abbas.
The committee, which will also be subject to U.S. supervision, will include a group of technocrats, who will jointly manage civilian affairs of the Gaza Strip under the oversight of the Palestinian Authority.
The report comes a day after Egypt's foreign minister said that rival Palestinian groups Fatah and Hamas had arrived in Cairo for talks seeking to create a post-war administration for Gaza under the Palestinian Authority.
The two-page document defines the make up of the committee, which it says will manage Gaza "as the Palestinian government, responsible for all sectors (health, economy, education, agriculture, services, and essential facilities). The document also gives the committee authority over humanitarian relief work in Gaza following the war as well as reconstruction efforts.
Gaza has been under the authority of Hamas since it took over the Strip after violent clashes with Fatah in the 2007 "Battle of Gaza." Repeated attempts to reconcile Fatah and Hamas by various external powers, including Russia, China, and Arab states, have failed.
However, due to Hamas' weakened position in the Gaza Strip after 14 months of war, and the loss of most of its civil and military leadership in Gaza, it likely had little leverage to impose conditions.
The document describes the creation of a committee of 10-15 qualified experts from Palestinian society "known for their integrity, experience, and transparency." The committee will also entail a hierarchical structure with a president, vice president, and heads of various departments: health, education, humanitarian aid, economy, etc.
The committee is envisioned as having ultimate civil control in Gaza, including control over ports and land crossings on the Gaza side. It is not clear if Israel will agree to hand over such authority initially, although, if it agrees to the committee's establishment as part of a ceasefire agreement, it could hand over control of such areas in a gradual fashion.
The talks are part of an Egyptian effort to leverage the Lebanon ceasefire in order to negotiate a ceasefire and hostage release agreement between Israel and Hamas.
The document laid out six principles largely designed to keep the Palestinian Territories in Judea and Samaria united with Gaza under one political entity based on the vision of a Palestinian State within the 1967 borders.
Furthermore, the document indicates that the committee is designed to be a temporary solution, performing its tasks until the "reasons for its establishment are removed, general elections are held, or another agreed-upon formula is adopted."
It was unclear if Israel would agree to the deal being formulated, as it has repeatedly rejected any role for Hamas in Gaza after the end of the war. Israel has also said that the Palestinian Authority would need to be "reformed" in order to have any control over civilian affairs in Gaza.
While the Egyptian effort is intended to produce a ceasefire agreement close to the Jan. 20 Inauguration Day of President-elect Donald Trump, Israel appears to believe that it can wait for the Trump administration to receive more favorable negotiating conditions.
Republished with permission from All Israel News