FILE- Members of Hamas security forces are deployed in the Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip. AFP
In a statement, Qassem said Hamas had taken a “clear decision” to dismantle the institutions running Gaza and was ready to facilitate all arrangements required for the technocratic committee to assume its duties. He called for accelerating the formation of the body and for it to begin work “as soon as possible”.
The move aligns with an agreement reached by Palestinian factions during talks in Cairo on 24 October, which called for handing Gaza’s administration to a “Palestinian committee made up of independents and experts (technocrats) from the strip.”
The decision also comes amid preparations for the second phase of a Gaza ceasefire agreement brokered by Cairo, Doha, Ankara, and Washington and signed last October in Egypt’s Red Sea resort city Sharm El-Sheikh. The first phase of the deal stipulated an immediate ceasefire, an exchange of captives and detainees, the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza, and a partial Israeli military withdrawal from the enclave.
Despite the ceasefire, Israeli forces have continued near-daily military operations in Gaza, killing more than 400 Palestinians since the agreement took effect on 10 October. Israel has also maintained severe restrictions on humanitarian aid, with deliveries falling well below agreed levels, drawing criticism and condemnation from regional states, including Egypt, and international aid agencies.
The second phase of the agreement calls for a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, the disarmament of Hamas, the deployment of an International Stabilization Force (ISF), and the establishment of a “Gaza Peace Board” chaired by US President Donald Trump to oversee a transitional administration. A Palestinian technocratic committee would be responsible for day-to-day governance.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government has cited the failure to recover the remains of the last missing Israeli soldier in Gaza as grounds for delaying the transition to the second phase. Washington and regional mediators have rejected the delay and pushed for implementation.
Mid-month has been floated as a possible timeframe for announcing the second phase, after delays of nearly 100 days.
In a related development, Bishara Bahbah, head of the Arab Americans for Peace Committee and a mediator involved in Gaza talks, told Asharq Al-Awsat that Trump is expected to announce the formation of the Gaza Peace Board on 13 January. Bahbah said this would be followed shortly by the announcement of the Palestinian technocratic committee during meetings in Cairo.
Bahbah stated that the Peace Board would include representatives from several countries, including Egypt, Qatar, and the UAE. He added that proposed names for the technocratic committee initially faced Israeli objections but were later accepted following visits by Bulgarian politician Nikolay Mladenov, the candidate to head the Peace Board, to Israel and Ramallah last week.
Bahbah said he had spoken with Hamas leaders on Thursday, who told him that no negotiations had yet taken place on the issue of disarmament. He added that the names of committee members were not finalized but would include Palestinians from Gaza, whether currently residing in the strip or originally from it.
Hamas reiterated its demand for a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, the reopening of the Rafah crossing in both directions, and the unrestricted flow of goods into the territory.
The announcement coincided with the arrival of a senior Hamas delegation in Cairo late Saturday for a new round of consultations on the second phase of the ceasefire, according to media reports.
Al-Araby Al-Jadeed reported that the delegation is headed by Khalil al-Hayya, Hamas’s leader in Gaza, and includes Husam Badran, head of the group’s national relations office. Cairo is expected to host parallel meetings among Palestinian factions aimed at reaching a consensus on the formation of the Gaza administration committee.
Sources told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that the delegation may also include Zaher Jabarin, head of Hamas’s West Bank office, and Khaled Meshaal, head of the group’s bureau abroad. According to the sources, the committee is expected to comprise 15 non-factional Palestinian figures from Gaza tasked with managing the territory during the transitional period and preparing it for reconstruction.
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