The US welcomes the new Palestinian government

AP , Saturday 30 Mar 2024

The United States has welcomed the formation of a new Palestinian autonomy government, signaling it is accepting the revised Cabinet lineup as a step toward Palestinian political reform.

Parachutes drop supplies into the northern Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, Wednesday, Marc
Parachutes drop supplies into the northern Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, March 27, 2024. AP

 

The Biden administration has called for “revitalizing” the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority in hopes that it can also administer the Gaza Strip once the Israeli war ends. 

In a statement late Friday, U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said the United States looks forward to working with the new group of ministers “to deliver on credible reforms.”

“A revitalized PA is essential to delivering results for the Palestinian people in both the West Bank and Gaza and establishing the conditions for stability in the broader region,” Miller said.

The Palestinian Authority administers parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank. It is headed by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who has not faced an election in almost two decades, as Israel is preventing elections in the occupied Palestinian territories since 2007.

The United States sees the Palestinian Authority as a key part of its preferred plans for post-war Gaza. However, the authority has little popular support or legitimacy among Palestinians, with many viewing it as a subcontractor of the occupation because of its security cooperation with Israel in the West Bank.

Earlier this month, Abbas tapped Mohammad Mustafa, a U.S.-educated economist, as prime minister. On Thursday, Mustafa named his new lineup. It includes relatively unknown technocrats, but also Abbas' interior minister and several members of the secular Fatah movement he leads. Several of the ministers are from Gaza, but it's not clear if they are currently living there.

The resistance group Hamas, a rival of Abbas, drove his security forces from Gaza in a 2007 takeover. The United States wants a reformed Palestinian Authority to return and administer Gaza, an idea that has been rejected by both Israel and Hamas.

A major challenge for the Palestinian Authority, should it be given a role in administering Gaza, will be reconstruction. Nearly six months of brutal Israeli war has destroyed critical infrastructure including hospitals, schools, and homes as well as roads, sewage systems, and the electrical grid.

Airstrikes and Israel's ground offensive have left more than 32,500 Palestinians dead, and displaced over 80% of Gaza’s population and pushed hundreds of thousands to the brink of famine, the U.N. and international aid agencies say.

Israel has said it will maintain open-ended security control over Gaza and partner with Palestinians who are not affiliated with the Palestinian Authority or Hamas. It’s unclear who in Gaza would be willing to take on such a role.

*This story has been edited by Ahram Online. 

 

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