Latest news with #TamimKhalaf
Al-Ahram Weekly
09-03-2025
- Politics
- Al-Ahram Weekly
Egypt looks forward to engaging with US for Gaza reconstruction: FM Spox - Foreign Affairs
Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Tamim Khalaf said that Egypt is looking forward to engaging with the US administration to bring the Gaza reconstruction plan to life during a recent interview on BBC Newshour. Related Hamas delegation arrives in Cairo for a new round of ceasefire talks Khalaf's remarks respond to whether the Arab Gaza reconstruction plan could move forward without US support. "There will be an intention in the next coming weeks that we will have foreign ministers or Arab officials that will be visiting Washington DC, engaging with the US administration," Khalaf stated. He noted that Egypt and the US share a common goal in reconstructing the Gaza Strip. However, he also underscored the Arab leaders' rejection of Palestinian displacement, as they are 'exceptionally sensitive to attempts to detach them from their homeland.' During the interview, which took place the day after the Extraordinary Arab Summit, Khalaf explained that Gazans know leaving the strip would be a 'one-way ticket.' When asked whether Hamas's refusal to disarm meant it would still hold real power in Gaza despite new governance efforts, Khalaf acknowledged the challenge, stating that "there is no perfect solution, but there are reasonable solutions." Furthermore, he cited leaders' endorsement of the Gaza Administration Committee, an independent committee composed of technocrats and non-partisan figures and supervised by the Palestinian Authority (PA), which will manage the affairs of the strip during a six-month transitional period. On Sunday, Hamas announced it also endorses this solution. The primary objective of the Gaza Administration Committee is to enable the full return of the PA to the strip and facilitate governance during the transition. Addressing the proposed plan's $53 billion budget, Khalaf attributed the high cost to the "extensive damage that the Israelis have done over the past 16 months," adding that Gazans endured an "unspeakable humanitarian tragedy." He emphasized that a key outcome of the summit was the agreement to organize an international conference in collaboration with Palestine and the United Nations, to establish a trust fund managing the financial commitments from donor countries and financial institutions. "Palestinians need it, [...] and therefore we are going to work extensively to try to achieve this objective,' Khalaf said. Gaza reconstruction plan On Tuesday, the Extraordinary Arab Summit in Cairo adopted Egypt's Gaza reconstruction plan, presenting a unified Arab stance against US President Donald Trump's colonialist proposal to 'takeover' the Gaza Strip and displace its native population. The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and several countries, including the UK, France, Italy, and Germany, have backed the plan, while the US position remains unclear. Khalfaf clarified that the plan, developed by experts and urban planners, consists of three main phases. The first begins with a six-month early recovery phase focused on removing 50 million tons of rubble, clearing unexploded ordnance, and providing temporary housing for 1.2 million Palestinians. The first phase, scheduled for 2025-2027 with a $20 billion budget, will ensure complete debris removal and use of the recovered materials for land reclamation in the strip's coastal areas. This phase will focus on constructing essential infrastructure networks, developing 200,000 housing units, and repairing 60,000 homes to accommodate 1.6 million people. The second phase, which is set for 2027-2030 and has a $30 billion budget, will focus on expanding infrastructure networks and constructing an additional 200,000 housing units to accommodate 1.2 million people, bringing the total to 460,000 units for 2.75 million natives. Israel's genocidal war on Gaza caused $29.9 billion in material damage and $19.1 billion in economic and social losses. More than two million Palestinians have been displaced, facing a brutal besiegement and struggling with the lack of water, food, shelter, medical care, and fuel. The war also killed over 47,000 Palestinians, including 17,000 children and 7,200 women, and has left 111,000 injured as of January 2025. Follow us on: Facebook Instagram Whatsapp Short link:
Egypt Today
08-03-2025
- Politics
- Egypt Today
FM Spox: Gaza Strip reconstruction plan extends over 5 years and includes 3 phases
Gaza under Israeli aggression - file CAIRO - 8 March 2025: Ambassador Tamim Khalaf, the spokesman for the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stressed the importance of the call the was carried out between Dr. Badr Abdel Aati, Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Immigration, and "Steve Witkoff", the US Special Envoy to the Middle East. Ambassador Khalaf noted that the call comes within the framework of the intensive calls and active movements carried out by the Egyptian state to support the Arab plan for early recovery and reconstruction in the Gaza Strip at the international level. He added during a telephone interview on the "This Morning" program broadcast on "Extra News" TV channel: "Egypt has prepared a comprehensive plan regarding the Gaza Strip and presented it to the Arab Summit in Cairo last week in order to be approved by all Arab countries, and thus it has moved from being an Egyptian plan to an Arab plan." The spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs continued: "The plan to rebuild the Gaza Strip depends on the Palestinian people remaining on their land and is witnessing complete Arab consensus.. This plan extends over 5 years and includes 3 stages according to specific timetables until 2030." He further stressed that the Foreign Ministry highlights the need to complete the remaining stages of the ceasefire inside the Strip.
LBCI
26-02-2025
- Politics
- LBCI
Egypt rejects proposal for it to run Gaza as 'unacceptable': Foreign Ministry
Egypt rejected on Wednesday an Israeli opposition leader's proposal that it take over the administration of Gaza, calling the idea "unacceptable" and contrary to the longstanding Egyptian and Arab position on the Palestinian cause. "Any notions or proposals that circumvent the constants of the Egyptian and Arab stance (on Gaza)... are rejected and unacceptable," Foreign Ministry spokesman Tamim Khalaf was quoted as saying by the state news agency MENA, a day after Israel's Yair Lapid floated the idea. AFP
Al Arabiya
26-02-2025
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
Egypt rejects proposal for it to run Gaza as ‘unacceptable': Foreign ministry
Egypt rejected on Wednesday an Israeli opposition leader's proposal that it take over the administration of Gaza, calling the idea 'unacceptable' and contrary to the longstanding Egyptian and Arab position on the Palestinian cause. 'Any notions or proposals that circumvent the constants of the Egyptian and Arab stance (on Gaza)... are rejected and unacceptable,' Foreign Ministry spokesman Tamim Khalaf was quoted as saying by the state news agency MENA, a day after Israel's Yair Lapid floated the idea.
Arab News
26-02-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
Egypt rejects proposal for it to run Gaza as ‘unacceptable': foreign ministry
CAIRO: Egypt rejected on Wednesday an Israeli opposition leader's proposal that it take over the administration of Gaza, calling the idea 'unacceptable' and contrary to the longstanding Egyptian and Arab position on the Palestinian cause. 'Any notions or proposals that circumvent the constants of the Egyptian and Arab stance (on Gaza)... are rejected and unacceptable,' Foreign Ministry spokesman Tamim Khalaf was quoted as saying by the state news agency MENA, a day after Israel's Yair Lapid floated the idea. 'The solution is Egypt will take responsibility for the management of the Gaza Strip for eight years with an option to extend to 15 years,' Lapid told the hawkish Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) think tank in Washington on Tuesday. 'At the same time, its foreign external debt will be paid off by the international community and regional allies,' the former Israeli prime minister continued.
