Representatives of the bodies tasked with rebuilding and governing the Gaza Strip after the war will meet in Cyprus next week, Nicosia and an official from the "Peace Council" established by US President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday, in a gathering that Israeli media described as an opportunity to "reset" the process.
A member of the technocratic administrative committee tasked with taking over the administration of the Strip — whose entry into Gaza remains blocked — said his committee would also attend the meeting. Cypriot government spokesman Konstantinos Letymbiotis said the meeting would be held on Tuesday and Wednesday of next week.
A Peace Council official told AFP that the council "meets regularly" and that "the meeting planned in Cyprus will be no different."
He added that the council is "actively working on preparing measures to advance reconstruction efforts and improve governance of the Strip for the benefit of Gaza's residents."
The Times of Israel reported that representatives of the various bodies working within the council's framework would reassess their strategy after six "difficult" months in which little had been achieved. The newspaper quoted an Arab diplomat and a Palestinian official as saying the meeting represented an opportunity to "reset" the course.
The Peace Council was established in January as part of a US proposal that produced a ceasefire agreement in the war between Israel and Hamas last October. Among its objectives is the transfer of administration of the Strip from Hamas to the technocratic administrative committee, whose entry into the territory Israel continues to block. According to the committee member, the Cyprus meeting will discuss "the committee's transition to Gaza and the commencement of its work."
The first phase of the truce saw the release of the last Israeli hostages in exchange for the release of Palestinian detainees. However, the transition to the second phase — which includes the disarmament of Hamas and the gradual withdrawal of the Israeli army — remains on hold.
The war in the Gaza Strip broke out when Hamas launched an attack on Israel in October 2023, to which the Jewish state responded with a military campaign that led to the destruction of Gaza and the killing of more than 72,000 Palestinians, according to the Strip's health ministry, whose figures the United Nations considers reliable.