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Last update - 19:52 02/03/2009
International donors pledge $5.2 billion for Gaza reconstruction
By Amira Hass, Haaretz Correspondent and The Associated Press
Tags: israel news, palestinians 

Egypt's foreign minister on Monday said international donors have pledged $5.2 billion in new funds at the conference for rebuilding Gaza, devastated during Israel's offensive against its Hamas rulers.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit said the figure is "beyond our expectations." He said other nations recommitted themselves to funds they promised in the past but never delivered, bringing the total to $5.2 billion in pledges.

Palestinian Planning Minister Samir Abdullah said the money from Monday's conference is earmarked for humanitarian aid to Gaza, rebuilding in the territory and budget support to the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority.
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He could not immediately say how much was going to each fund.

The international donors' conference aimed at rebuilding the war-torn Gaza Strip got underway without Hamas on Monday, as the group warned that the West's boycott of it would undercut international reconstruction efforts in the Gaza Strip.

"To bypass the legitimate Palestinian authorities in the Gaza Strip is a move in the wrong direction and it deliberately undermines the reconstruction," Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum said from Gaza.

Clinton: Mideast peace cannot afford more delays

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told delegates at the conference in Sharm el-Sheikh earlier on Monday that U.S. aid for the Palestinians was part of a broader push into a comprehensive Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement.

"We cannot afford more setbacks or delays - or regrets about what might have been had different decisions been made," she said in apparent reference to the failure of previous peace initiatives.

"It is time to look ahead with an eye on the human aspects of what years of regional conflict have meant for the Palestinians and others," she said. "The United States is committed to a comprehensive peace between Israel and its Arab neighbors, and we will pursue it on many fronts."

In her address to the conference aimed at rebuilding the war-torn Gaza Strip, Clinton announced U.S. aid of more than $900 million for the Palestinians overall and said stringent safeguards were in place to ensure no funds went to Hamas.

She gave no breakdown of the funds, but her spokesman, Robert A. Wood, said on Sunday that it included $300 million in humanitarian aid for Gaza and about $600 million in budget and development aid to the West Bank based Palestinian Authority.

The Islamist group, which seized power of Gaza in a bloody 2007 coup, was not invited to take part in the conference.

"Our response to today's crisis in Gaza cannot be separated from our broader efforts to achieve a comprehensive peace," Clinton said, on her first trip to the region as the new top U.S. diplomat.

"Only by acting now can we turn this crisis into an opportunity to move us closer to our shared goals," added Clinton. Later on Monday, in her first foray into Middle East peacemaking, Clinton will go to Israel and the West Bank.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas were among the high-profile delegates in attendance at the conference, along with 45 foreign ministers.

Of the more than $900 million in U.S. funding, which has to be agreed by the U.S. Congress, only a third was earmarked specifically to provide urgent humanitarian aid for Gaza after Israel's military offensive in December.

Clinton was adamant that none of that money would go to Hamas, which rules Gaza and which Washington labels a terrorist organization. "We have worked with the Palestinian Authority to install safeguards that will ensure our funding is only used where and for whom it is intended and does not end up in the wrong hands," she said.

A key goal of the U.S. funding is to shore up the Western-backed government of Abbas, who governs the West Bank.

"We will work with our Palestinian partners, President Abbas and Prime Minister [Salam] Fayyad to address critical humanitarian, budgetary, security and infrastructure needs," said Clinton.

Of the U.S. package, $200 million will help cover budget shortfalls of Abbas's government and $400 million for economic reform and private sector and other projects on the West Bank.

Palestinian factions are in reconciliation talks to form a unity government that could include Hamas.

Clinton reiterated a U.S. demand that to be recognized in that government, Hamas must recognize Israel, renounce violence and accept previous Israeli-Palestinian peace agreements. She said by providing humanitarian aid to Gaza the United States wanted to foster conditions in which a separate Palestinian state could be fully realized.

"This positive approach I have just outlined offers an opportunity for even greater progress if our Palestinian partners can continue to work with us and abide by the [Palestinian Authority] ... commitments to renounce violence and recognize Israel's right to exist," she added.

Mubarak: Israeli-Palestinian peace will come this year

In his opening remarks to the conference, Mubarak told delegates that cease-fire deal between Israel and the Palestinians was of utmost importance, adding that the goal of the gathering was to help the two sides reach a truce.

"I see a momentum in peace efforts. I look forward that this year will be the year of peaceful settlement between Israelis and Palestinians," Mubarak said.

He also told donors that aid was needed for Gaza but could not compensate
for the 1,300 Palestinian lives lost during the 22-day Israeli offensive. "I reach to you with an appeal from the heart to declare tangible pledges," he said.

Mubarak warned Hamas that it mustn't treat the donors' pledges as a conquest of war. He cautioned that rebuilding Gaza following Israel's three-week offensive in January would depend on several factors, including a long-term truce and the opening up of the area's closed border crossings.

The United Nations and aid agencies have warned that rebuilding the coastal enclave was a daunting task as long as border crossings between Israel and Gaza remained closed.

"The situation at the border crossings is intolerable. Aid workers do not have access. Essential commodities cannot get in," UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told donors at a one-day conference on Gaza in the Egyptian resort of Sharm El-Sheikh.

"Our first and indispensable goal, therefore, is open crossings. By the same token, however, it is therefore essential to ensure that illegal weapons do not enter Gaza."

Taking the stand, Sarkozy urged responsible Palestinians to seek peace with Israel - and said the release of the captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit in exchange for Palestinian prisoners is a priority.

"You must admit that there is no other road to the creation of a Palestinian state but to engage resolutely in searching for a political solution and engage in a dialogue with Israel," Sarkozy said in a clear message to the militant group.

The conference was to call on 80 donor countries and international organizations to give at least $2.8 billion for the battered coastal area.

Related articles:
  • PA seeks more than $2.7 billion from donor nations for Gaza recovery
  • Egypt: Gaza donations to go through UN and World Bank
  • Egypt to Hamas, Fatah: Reconcile for Palestinian statehood
  • Gaza donor conference: Who is pledging what
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      1.   Perhaps it`s time to demand the implementation of 242??? 13:11  |  Jehudah Ben-Israel 02/03/09
      2.   Hamas 13:14  |  baurat 02/03/09
      3.   Without Hamas 14:07  |  fk 02/03/09
      4.   To #1 14:27  |  onimo 02/03/09
      5.   # 2 baurat 14:28  |  Axel 02/03/09
      6.   Hamas is not the problem 14:37  |  Dav 02/03/09
      7.   Omino what`s crummy about a UN resolution 15:00  |  x-ray 02/03/09
      8.   nonsense 15:23  |  KA 02/03/09
      9.   ME peace 15:25  |  Bill 02/03/09
      10.   #5 Axel 15:32  |  yonatan 02/03/09
      11.   Don`t get your hopes up Hillary 15:37  |  Mark Lincoln 02/03/09
      12.   when self-determination is to wipe Israel, the rights ARE denied 15:39  |  Miron 02/03/09
      13.   Hamas Unwelcome And Unwanted 15:40  |  Bill Foonman 02/03/09
      14.   crazy US fiscal policy 15:42  |  Maria 02/03/09
      15.   Pass a unanimous binding UNSC resolution immediately for peace 15:44  |  Jurist 02/03/09
      16.   Clinton - stick with home problems 15:48  |  Efraim 02/03/09
      17.   oh really, KA? 16:03  |  yonatan 02/03/09
      18.   Bypassing Hamas is not the solution. 16:04  |  Stephen. 02/03/09
      19.   Hamas and it`s bunkrupt policy 16:13  |  Yosi 02/03/09
      20.   Indeed, # 4, I did not mention in my post the Arabs` drive to... 16:27  |  Jehudah Ben-Israel 02/03/09
      21.   Us $$$$ to GAZA 16:51  |  john mast 02/03/09
      22.   Donation 17:24  |  Anon Simon 02/03/09
      23.   fk 17:33  |  Brad 02/03/09
      24.   Axel: Here is the difference 17:34  |  Brad 02/03/09
      25.   Gaza and the U.S. 17:35  |  Yvonne 02/03/09
      26.   Hillary, keep counting the Quassams 17:41  |  Giora 02/03/09
      27.   # 1 jehudah 18:05  |  Axel 02/03/09
      28.   The main current interest of Hamas... 18:16  |  Esther 02/03/09
      29.   Hamas needs to understand they are becoming irrelavant 18:19  |  Silver 02/03/09
      30.   Bypassing Hamas 18:22  |  Jeff Northridge 02/03/09
      31.   #3 fk 18:51  |  Giora 02/03/09
      32.   Timing isn`t politically correct! 19:01  |  rigma 02/03/09
      33.   Yvonne # 16 The Legal Solution 19:08  |  Jeff Northridge 02/03/09
      34.   Ignorant and arrogant 19:10  |  Marilyn 02/03/09
      35.   Jeff, 100% wrong 19:13  |  Marilyn 02/03/09
      36.   Maria - You are stupid... $10 Billion a month for a war in Iraq 19:14  |  Ben 02/03/09
      37.   Efraim - Man that must burn inside.. The US supporting 19:20  |  DF 02/03/09
      38.   Silver - Hamas has always been irrelavant... 19:20  |  DF 02/03/09
      39.   How will it all be possible 20:03  |  Observer 02/03/09
      40.   It`ll all gp to the Hamas coffers 20:09  |  Yonatan 02/03/09
      41.   Bypassing Israel 20:18  |  Chris Linthwaite 02/03/09
      42.   Israel should pay, not others 20:40  |  j 02/03/09
      43.   next year Palestinian Blackhole will demand more 20:47  |  02/03/09
      44.   Don`t understand why Gaza needs help 20:50  |  Penkava 02/03/09
      45.   What is the value of a "pledge"? 20:55  |  tad chase 02/03/09
      46.   `Donors` 21:16  |  Chris 02/03/09
      47.   Well, it`s not like Hamas have any other options... 21:17  |  AT 02/03/09
      48.   A simple solution. 21:23  |  Ebrahim 02/03/09
      49.   Hi Time for Egypt to Take Full Control of Rafeh w/o Israel`s OK.. 21:23  |  Monitor 02/03/09
      50.   here is an option 21:30  |  vik 02/03/09
      51.   A waste of money 21:45  |  leo 02/03/09
      52.   Another Linthwit Prediction 22:11  |  Bilbi 02/03/09
      53.   I pledge another billion 22:17  |  Bernie Madoff 02/03/09
      54.   Israel must foot the bill for the reconstruction, otherwise 22:19  |  Paul 02/03/09
      55.   Hamas was properly elected 22:24  |  Keith T. 02/03/09
      56.   Relieve them of the consequences 22:25  |  Jess Ghannam 02/03/09
      57.   There`s a sucker born every minute 22:27  |  IW 02/03/09
      58.   We have to claim damage from Israel 22:45  |  Robert 02/03/09
      59.   Sodom and Gomorah are back replaced by hamas and the world 22:56  |  neddie 02/03/09
      60.   waste! soon israel will turn it to rubble 00:18  |  Gisele 03/03/09
      61.   Gaza reconstruction 01:53  |  Sense 03/03/09
      62.   Let the foreign idiots give their billions and let them build; I 22:30  |  glenna 09/03/09
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