GAZA (Dispatches) – Qatar has reached an agreement on a grant for reconstruction in the Gaza Strip and the opening of crossings into the enclave, the state news agency QNA reported on Monday.
Qatar and Egypt both promised funds to help rebuild the Palestinian territory, which has been under a blockade by the Zionist regime since 2007.
Qatar’s aid envoy said on Monday it will soon resume funding for civil servants and poor families in the strip under a new mechanism.
Envoy Mohammed Al-Emadi said after meeting leaders of Hamas resistance movement in Gaza that Qatari stipends for civil servants and poor families, suspended since May, would resume in coming days.
Gas-rich Qatar used to spend $30 million per month to help operate the enclave’s lone power plant and to support needy families and public servants.
Emadi said the new agreement also entails full opening of border crossings with Gaza, which the Zionist regime and neighboring Egypt keep cordoned off. There was no immediate word on when this might happen.
The hold-up in Qatari payouts had fueled rancor in Gaza.
Emadi voiced hope that the resumption of payouts and a full border opening “will have a clear and positive impact on improving the living reality in Gaza Strip (and) help all parties emerge from the tense situation”.
Qatar and Egypt have both promised funds to help rebuild the Palestinian territory. Having already pumped more than $1 billion into Gaza projects since 2014, Qatar pledged another $500 million in late May.