The US Secretary of State presented a proposal for post-war reconstruction and governance in Gaza on Tuesday. It is our responsibility to sustain the strategic gains made in the past 15 months and lay the foundation for a better future, Secretary of State Antony Blinken told the Atlantic Council in Washington, DC, a policy think tank.
Gaza should be under the control of the Palestinian Authority, with security under international control in the short term, he said. Blinken said the Palestinian Authority should invite the international community to provide essential services such as banking, water, energy and health.
He said Arab countries could take on security and those services. He said a senior UN official would oversee such efforts, in accordance with a UN Security Council resolution. The interim administration will include people chosen in consultation with the people of Gaza.
Blinken said that the Middle East has often seen one dictator step into the shoes of another, or conflict and chaos. Mr. Blinken was often interrupted by protesters as he spoke, with some shouting that he was the Minister of Genocide.
