US-mediated talks broke down this summer before the 50-day war between Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, and Israel began -- the third since 2008 -- and it remains unclear how peace can come about.
Norwegian Foreign Minister Borge Brende, who co-chaired the one-day meeting with Egypt, said pledges of $5.4 billion have been made, but that only half of that money would be "dedicated" to the reconstruction of the coastal strip.
Brende did not say what the other half of the funds would be spent on. Other delegates have spoken of budgetary support, boosting economic activity, emergency relief and other projects.
Meanwhile,
...back at the fist fight, Jake ducked another roundhouse, then parried with his left, then with his right, finally with his chin...
Israeli officials acknowledged Sunday that Israel failed to link international assistance for the rehabilitation of Gazoo after the summer's war to its central demand that Hamas disarm, as delegates representing some 50 nations and 20 regional and international organizations pledged billions to rebuild the Paleostinian enclave.
An Israeli official was quoted by Channel 2 admitting that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's demand that Hamas give up its arms -- endorsed in principle by the US, EU and others at the end of the 50-day conflict -- had not prevailed as a condition for overseas funding to rehabilitate Gazoo. The funding for reconstruction, the official said, would flow so long as the ceasefire was maintained. Further development of Gazoo after such reconstruction, the official said, would be contingent on the demilitarization of the Strip.
Israeli officials noted that a mechanism had been agreed, with UN involvement, to ensure that international funding not be diverted to finance the rebuilding of Hamas's military capabilities. But sources quoted by Channel 10 expressed concern
...meaning the brow was mildly wrinkled, the eyebrows drawn slightly together, and a thoughtful expression assumed, not that anything was actually done or indeed that any thought was actually expended...
that such a mechanism would not hold firm, and the same TV report quoted sources in Gazoo as saying there was no practical way to control how such money would be spent. The head of the Israeli Air Force's Air Defense Command told The Times of Israel last week that Hamas has resumed rocket manufacturing in Gazoo.
Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman said earlier Sunday that Gazoo reconstruction efforts would need the consent of Israel, which was not invited to the international conference in Cairo. "Gazoo cannot be rebuilt without the cooperation and participation of Israel," he said.
Neither Hamas nor the terror group Islamic Jihad
...created after many members of the Egyptian Moslem Brotherhood decided the organization was becoming too moderate. Operations were conducted out of Egypt until 1981 when the group was exiled after the assassination of President Anwar Sadat. They worked out of Gaza until they were exiled to Lebanon in 1987, where they clove tightly to Hezbollah. In 1989 they moved to Damascus, where they remain a subsidiary of Hezbollah...
were invited to the Cairo conference. Hamas TV on Sunday aired footage of devastation in the Strip, including film of a building ostensibly collapsing this weekend in the heavily hit Shejaiya neighborhood. "If the reconstruction process means a new blockade," an unidentified Gazoo resident warned, reading from a prepared statement, "the people will rise and attain their rights by themselves." A Hamas official also declared in a televised address that "Israel's demise is closer than you think."
Organizers of the Cairo conference hope the pledges will be paid over a period of three years to aid reconstruction in the Gazoo Strip, which borders Israel and Egypt. Both countries have blockaded Gazoo since Hamas took power there in 2007, to prevent the terror group importing more weaponry.
Donors plan to funnel the aid through Abbas's Paleostinian Authority, and aim to bypass Hamas. However,
if you can't be a good example, then you'll just have to be a horrible warning...
Abbas and Hamas recently formed a national unity government which held its first Cabinet meeting in Gazoo last week.
Leading participants said the reconstruction of Gazoo cannot be carried out in isolation from efforts to revive Israeli-Paleostinian talks in search for a comprehensive and lasting peace agreement.
"We must not lose sight of the root causes of the recent hostilities: A restrictive occupation that has lasted almost half a century, the continued denial of Paleostinian rights and the lack of tangible progress in peace negotiations," said UN Secretary-General
the ephemeral Ban Ki-moon... of whom it can be said to his credit that he is not Kofi Annan...
, who later announced in a news conference that he planned to visit Israel, Gazoo and the West Bank on Tuesday.
"I call on all parties to come together to chart a clear course toward a just and final peace," Ban said. "Going back to the status quo is not an option; this is the moment for transformational change."
