Egypt allocates $500M to reconstruction of Gaza Strip after Israeli aggression

CAIRO – 18 May 2021: President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi announced Tuesday during his visit to Paris that Egypt is allocating $500 million to the reconstruction of Gaza Strip, and that Egyptian firms will take part in the work.

The announcement was made during his participation in a tripartite summit with his French counterpart Emanuel Macron and Kind Abdullah of Jordan. 

On May 17, the French president had stated that they would be working on a roadmap and examine brokering long-term peace talks between the Israelis and the Palestinians. 

Macron also said that he would hold talks in a couple of days with the Israeli prime minister whereas he would mention the Israeli airstrikes that targeted a building that housed media newsrooms.  

Since May 7, Israeli forces in the West Bank and Jerusalem have been engaged in clashes with civilians who were protesting forced displacement, particularly from Sheikh Jarrah eastern Jerusalem, and assaults on worshippers in Al Aqsa Mosque. And, since May 10, Israel has been shelling and carrying out airstrikes against Gaza Strip. The aggression has thus far incurred 236 deaths and 6,278 injuries, as reported by the Palestinian News and Information Agency (WAFA).

The breakdown is 213 deaths, including 61 children and 36 women, and 1,442 injuries in Gaza Strip; 23 deaths and 3,825 injuries in the West Bank; and, one victim and 1,011 injuries in Jerusalem. In the West Bank, 441 were shot with live rounds, and 172 were shot with rubber-coated bullets among other injuries caused by tear gas, and beating up. As for Palestinians who got detained in Jerusalem and the West Bank, the figure is 850.

The strikes also caused the destruction of more than 200 residential units in Gaza Strip and 31 educational establishments, including schools, colleges, and vocational training centers. According to the United Nations, 40,000 Palestinians got displaced – mainly from the North to the South – while 2,500 lost their homes.

On the other hand, Magen David Agom announced that 10 Israelis got killed since the beginning of the "Fence Guardian" operation on May 10 while 675 others got injured.

On Saturday, the Israeli forces struck a number of towers in Gaza Strip. One of those housed the offices of a number of media outlets.

On Friday, power went off in most areas of Gaza Strip because of the Israeli aggression carried out not just from land and air but also from sea as Israeli battleships struck the shores of Shatea El Sudaneya northern Gaza.