Trump plans first 'Board of Peace' meeting despite nonstop Israeli violations of Gaza truce
Israeli-controlled areas of the Gaza Strip are reportedly marked for high-value development while the rest remains under siege
The US government plans to convene the first meeting of the so-called Board of Peace on 19 February, Axios reported on 6 February.
"It will be the first Board of Peace meeting and a fundraising conference for Gaza reconstruction," a US official is quoted as saying. The White House is also reportedly seeking to push ahead with the second phase of the unfulfilled “ceasefire.”
According to US and diplomatic sources who spoke with Axios, Washington intends to use the meeting to push forward implementation of phase two while seeking international funding for reconstruction.
“Nothing has been confirmed yet, but the administration is planning it and has started checking which leaders are able to attend,” one source said.
The meeting is expected to be held at the Institute of Peace in Washington, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu scheduled to meet Trump on 18 February, one day before the planned gathering.
Netanyahu has accepted the invitation for Israel to join the board, but has yet to sign the charter.
The board, launched in late January and chaired by Trump for life, currently has 27 members.
A UN Security Council resolution adopted in mid-November authorized the board to oversee implementation of the Gaza ceasefire and work on governance and reconstruction.
The initiative met with a cautious attitude by many in the west, while Palestinians outright condemned the move, as no Palestinian officials are in the governing board.
Although Washington claims that the second phase of the “ceasefire” has started, Israeli occupation forces have killed more than 550 Palestinians since phase one began in October.
The Board of Peace's charter promotes a so-called “New Gaza” built around high-end real estate, industrial zones, and is based on a ceasefire framework that leaves roughly half of Gaza under Israeli control, entrenching territorial partitions, with Israeli-controlled areas set for high-value development, while the rest of the strip remains under siege.
It also includes so-called incentives for the “voluntary” relocation of Gaza’s displaced population during reconstruction, with estimates suggesting up to 500,000 people could be displaced permanently.