Egypt, Qatar, Kuwait to Fund Separate Reconstruction Projects in Gaza

A truck brought cement through the Kerem Shalom crossing into Gaza at the beginning of September (AFP)
A truck brought cement through the Kerem Shalom crossing into Gaza at the beginning of September (AFP)
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Egypt, Qatar, Kuwait to Fund Separate Reconstruction Projects in Gaza

A truck brought cement through the Kerem Shalom crossing into Gaza at the beginning of September (AFP)
A truck brought cement through the Kerem Shalom crossing into Gaza at the beginning of September (AFP)

Member of the Islamic Jihad movement Daoud Shehab has hailed talks with Egyptian officials on reconstruction in the Gaza Strip, which he said will start in the coming weeks.

He told a local radio station that Cairo informed the Islamic Jihad that the delivery of required construction materials will take place without any conditions.

His remarks were made days after the Egyptian presidency and Qatari envoy Mohammed Al-Emadi announced that the reconstruction will kick off in Gaza soon.

Earlier in the week, Spokesman for the Egyptian Presidency Bassam Rady said that the presidency announced it will start reconstruction work in the Palestinian enclave in the coming days.

The first phase of removing rubble is complete through the Egyptian $500 million initiative to reconstruct Gaza, Rady said.

Days earlier, Emadi announced that the access of construction materials to Gaza has been agreed upon.

Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper was informed by sources that the Egyptians and Qataris will fund projects separately.

The sources added that the factions have been formally informed about the move.

Head of Palestinian Contractors' Union Alaa El-Din Al Araj said that Kuwait would fund the construction of residential buildings.

The construction materials are expected to start arriving in Gaza next week.



Macron Tells Netanyahu Ordeal of Gaza Civilians 'Must End'

 French President Emmanuel Macron waits to welcome the president of Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan Region for a working lunch at the Elysee Palace in Paris, on April 14, 2025. (AFP)
French President Emmanuel Macron waits to welcome the president of Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan Region for a working lunch at the Elysee Palace in Paris, on April 14, 2025. (AFP)
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Macron Tells Netanyahu Ordeal of Gaza Civilians 'Must End'

 French President Emmanuel Macron waits to welcome the president of Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan Region for a working lunch at the Elysee Palace in Paris, on April 14, 2025. (AFP)
French President Emmanuel Macron waits to welcome the president of Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan Region for a working lunch at the Elysee Palace in Paris, on April 14, 2025. (AFP)

France's President Emmanuel Macron told Israel's leader during a phone call Tuesday that the suffering of Gazan civilians "must end" and that only a ceasefire in Gaza could free remaining Israeli hostages.

"The ordeal the civilian populations of Gaza are going through must end," Macron posted on X after the call with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

He also called for "opening all humanitarian aid crossings" into the besieged Palestinian territory.

The United Nation has warned that Gaza's humanitarian crisis is spiraling out of control, with no aid having entered the territory for weeks.

Palestinian group Hamas said Monday that Israel had offered a 45-day ceasefire if it releases half of the remaining hostages held in Gaza.

A Hamas official told AFP that Israel had also demanded that the Palestinian fighters disarm to secure an end to the Gaza war, but that this crossed a "red line".

Macron said he told Netanyahu "the release of all hostages" and the "demilitarization of Hamas" were still an absolute priority for France.

He said he hoped for "a ceasefire, the release of all hostages, humanitarian aid, and then finally reopening the prospect of a political two-state solution".

Macron irked Israel last week when he suggested Paris could recognize a Palestinian state during a United Nations conference in New York in June.

Israel insists such moves by foreign states are premature.

But Macron has said he hopes French recognition of a Palestinian state will encourage not just other nations to follow suit, but also countries who do not recognize Israel to do so.

The creation of a Palestinian state alongside Israel is widely seen internationally as the only realistic way to resolve the decades-old conflict. Israel captured Gaza, the West Bank and east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war, and the Palestinians want all three for a future state. The last serious and substantive peace talks broke down after Netanyahu returned to power in 2009.

A number of European states have recently recognized a Palestinian state in what is largely a symbolic move aimed at reviving the peace process.