Middle East visit Development Minister Alabali Radovan continues her committed efforts for the future of Gaza
Copyright© Felix Zahn/BMZ/photothek.de
From August 25th to 28th Minister Alabali Radovan will be traveling through the Middle East and participating in talks in Israel, the Palestinian Territories, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia.
Development Minister Alabali Radovan said, “The situation is terrible: Hamas continues to hold the Israeli hostages captive – in Tel Aviv I will talk to their families, whose suffering moves us deeply. Although the Israeli government is allowing more humanitarian aid into Gaza, it is far from enough. Meanwhile they are continuing to destroy the Gaza Strip. In the ´West Bank and in East Jerusalem, Israeli policy with the expansion of settlements and de facto annexations is also making the situation more tense. A ceasefire is urgently needed. At the same time, it is important to start talking about the future now: there needs to be a clear prospect for the future for the people in this region. For me, one thing is clear: the future of Gaza must not be decided without the Palestinians. That is why I am once again travelling to the region, in order to sound out partners in Ramallah, Amman and Riad, and find out what ideas and capacities for rebuilding they have and how existing structures can be used. As soon as the situation permits, I want to do my bit as Development Minister so that the people in Gaza will be able to get back to living in dignity and security as quickly as possible.”
Rebuilding the Gaza Strip will take decades and will require huge amounts of resources. It will not be possible without a massive effort by the international community and by important regional powers like Jordan and Saudi Arabia. Which also means that the financial costs of rebuilding will have to be shared fairly.
During her Middle East visit Ms Alabali Radovan will be seeking backing for this huge joint effort. In Ramallah she will be meeting with Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa, Social Minister Sameh Hamad and Planning Minister Estephan Salameh. The Social Minister is in charge of the humanitarian and “Early Recovery” efforts, meaning that she is responsible for the short-term restoration of infrastructure which has been destroyed and for covering basic needs so that living in Gaza becomes possible again. The Planning Minister is concerned with the long-term prospects for the Gaza Strip. That includes building a functioning administration under the leadership of the Palestinian Authority. Because it is clear that Hamas cannot have any role in Gaza after the war.
The Minister’s meetings in Israel will also include talking with family members of the hostages who were abducted by Hamas on 7 October 2023.
In Jordan she will visit an UNRWA camp for Palestinian refugees, some of whom are living there in the fourth generation. Jordan has taken in 2.3 million registered Palestinian refugees and about 1.3 million people from Syria. Jordan is not only being stretched to the limit of its resources by hosting the refugees and by the crises facing its immediate neighbours. The situation is made worse by an acute water crisis that is further exacerbated by the growing impacts of climate change. In Amman, the Minister will hold political talks, including meetings with Planning Minister Zeina Toukan and with Natalie Boucly, the Deputy Head of the Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA. She will talk with them about the situation in Gaza, the joint emergency assistance for the people there and joint contributions towards the rebuilding of Gaza. Germany can bring to the rebuilding of Gaza experience gained from development cooperation projects carried out in partnership with Jordan that involved tackling the country’s dramatic water crisis.
In Saudi Arabia, political talks are planned and an exchange with officials from the Saudi Fund for Development, the counterpart of Germany’s KfW. Saudi Arabia is a political and financial heavyweight in the region and a country with which Germany has shared interests when it comes to development policy topics. Saudi Arabia has already announced its intention of supporting the Arab plan for rebuilding Gaza, which the German government has also welcomed as a good starting point. In addition, Saudi Arabia is playing a central role in the reconstruction of Syria.