The Irish Government has pledged another €2.5m in aid to the Palestinians as part of an international effort to rebuild the Gaza Strip after this summer’s 50-day war.
That brings our total contribution so far this year to €10m.
The United States is promising €212m in immediate assistance. US secretary of state John Kerry said people in Gaza “need our help desperately – not tomorrow, not next week, but they need it now”.
Both announcements were made at a donor conference for the Palestinians in Cairo. The Palestinians are seeking US $4 bn in international aid.
The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Charlie Flanagan, is at the conference in Cairo. He said there must be a two-state solution in the long term to achieve a lasting peace between Israel and Palestine.
"The long-term solution must be the two-state solution," he said. "The objective of Ireland's foreign policy has been dialogue and political solutions - non-military solutions. And we are very proud of our record of humanitarian aid."
"It's my hope that all countries- and in particular the wealthy and rich countries will make a very substantial contribution."
Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas promised a transparent and responsible use of funds pledged at the conference.
Mr Abbas said the latest Gaza war caused what he described as “tragedies that are difficult to be described by words ... Entire neighborhoods have been reduced to rubble and 90 families are no longer listed in the civil register.”
“The (Palestinian) government will carry out the reconstruction plan with full responsibility and transparency in coordination with the UN, the donors, international financial institutions, civil society and the private sector,” he said.
