Board of Peace envoy: Technocrats can’t enter Gaza if ceasefire violations persist

The Board of Peace’s High Representative for Gaza Nickolay Mladenov said at the Munich Security Conference on Friday that the Palestinian technocratic committee tasked with governing Gaza in place of Hamas cannot enter the Strip if violations of the ceasefire continue. “We need to make sure that what is happening now with the violations of the ceasefire stops,” said Mladenov, without placing blame on either Israel or Hamas. “If you put the committee tomorrow in Gaza and the violations of the ceasefire continue the way they are now. We’re only embarrassing the committee and ultimately making it ineffective.”

Under US President Donald Trump’s Gaza ceasefire plan, the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG), a committee of Palestinian technocrats unaffiliated with Hamas or the Palestinian Authority, is supposed to oversee the reconstruction of the devastated Strip, with backing from the US-led Board of Peace. Mladenov, a former Bulgarian minister and UN envoy to the Mideast, took on his central role on the Board last month.

Mladenov’s comments came as IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir saidon Friday the military would “respond to any violation” and would not give up on the war objectives of demilitarizing the Strip and disarming Hamas. Zamir, who was visiting Gaza, confirmed that the army has such plans ready to go if the government orders it. Israel has carried out daily strikes on what it says are terror operatives in Gaza. According to the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry, the death toll since the October ceasefire stands at nearly 600 and includes scores of women and children. (Ed note: And not only the problem of the committee members, but how would you like to be a construction worker, trying to build, and having Hamas take shots at you all day long?)   (Read More)