U.S. poised to name Palestinian technocratic committee to run Gaza

The United States is close to naming a panel of Palestinian technocrats to oversee daily life in the Gaza Strip, and a former Palestinian deputy minister for planning, Ali Shaath, has been chosen to lead the committee, according to four officials and six others briefed on the decision who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Several people briefed on the plans said the announcement could come as soon as Wednesday, when Palestinian officials from Hamas and other factions gather in Egypt for talks. American officials say they hope the committee will help erode Hamas’s grip on Gaza. The cease-fire plan backed by President Trump that went into effect in October called for an apolitical body focused largely on providing public services and staffed by independent Palestinian experts.

Officials have disclosed little publicly about who will join the committee, how it will administer Gaza or who might finance its operations. Analysts and officials say the initiative may be intended to inject momentum into Mr. Trump’s broader plans for Gaza, which have encountered obstacles.

While the truce between Israel and Hamas has largely held, Hamas has not laid down its arms, and U.S. efforts to persuade countries to send peacekeepers have found few takers.

Key Topics

World, Ali Shaath, Gaza Strip, Hamas, Palestinian Authority