Britain’s foreign secretary David Lammy, alongside his counterparts from France, Germany and Italy, have said they support an Arab-backed plan for the reconstruction of Gaza.
The $53bn (£41bn) plan, drawn up by Egypt and adopted by Arab leaders, would avoid displacing Palestinians from the enclave – but has been rejected by Israel and the US.
President Donald Trump has presented his vision to take control of the Gaza Strip and turn it into a “Middle East Riviera”.
His comments – as well as an AI video shared by the president showing a giant golden Trump statue – have been condemned internationally.
It comes as Hamas said on Saturday afternoon that it sees “positive indicators” for launching talks over the second phase of Gaza ceasefire talks.
In the joint statement, the four European foreign ministers said: “The plan shows a realistic path to the reconstruction of Gaza and promises – if implemented – swift and sustainable improvement of the catastrophic living conditions for the Palestinians living in Gaza.”
The statement said the countries were “committed to working with the Arab initiative,” and said they appreciated the “important signal” the Arab states had sent by developing it.
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The proposal outlines the creation of an administrative committee of independent, professional Palestinian technocrats to govern Gaza after the end of the war between Israel and militant group Hamas.
The committee would be responsible for the oversight of humanitarian aid and managing Gaza’s affairs for a temporary period under the supervision of the Palestinian Authority.
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The statement said Hamas “must neither govern Gaza nor be a threat to Israel any more” and that the four countries “support the central role for the Palestinian Authority and the implementation of its reform agenda”.
Meanwhile, foreign ministers from Muslim nations rejected calls by Mr Trump to remove the Palestinian population from Gaza, and instead backed the Egyptian plan.
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These ministers gathered in the Saudi city of Jeddah for a special session of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to address the situation in Gaza, at a time when the seven-week-old ceasefire between Israel and Hamas has been thrown into doubt.
Without specifically mentioning Mr Trump, the ministers said they rejected “plans aimed at displacing the Palestinian people individually or collectively… as ethnic cleansing, a grave violation of international law and a crime against humanity”.
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The ceasefire that began in mid-January brought a pause in Israel’s bombardment campaign and ground offensives in Gaza aimed at destroying Hamas after its 7 October attack on Israel.
The ceasefire’s first phase saw the release of 25 Israeli hostages held by militants in Gaza and the bodies of eight others in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinians imprisoned by Israel.
But the planned second phase of the deal – meant to bring the release of remaining hostages, a lasting truce and full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza – has been thrown into doubt.
