Between the National Authority and the Gaza Administration Committee

I do not compare or favor here between the authority and the committee, nor will I engage in the debate about the relationship between the National Authority and the technocratic committee, as Netanyahu still insists on rejecting the return of the authority to the Gaza Strip. Moreover, the Trump initiative does not favor the return of the authority, and there is only a vague indication of the possibility of its role after implementing the American and Israeli-required reforms, which aim to empty the authority of its role and national content, despite the Palestinian Authority's insistence on having a connection between Gaza and the West Bank and its responsibility for both, even while they are under occupation. On the other hand, the technocratic committee is a product of the Trump initiative that came amid the genocide and ethnic cleansing war.

What I aim to highlight is the attempt of the technocratic committee to imitate what President Abu Ammar did by trying to impart a national character to itself contrary to what is required of it in the Trump initiative and under different conditions and data.

The late President Yasser Arafat tried to bypass the texts of the Oslo Agreement through several means, including the nomenclature; the agreement stipulated the existence of a (Palestinian Authority), so Abu Ammar added the term national to it, making it the (Palestinian National Authority). Although Israel rejected any dealings with the new nomenclature, whether in official transactions or through its control over the issuance of identities and passports, it continued to be applied internally and with friendly countries. The Oslo Agreement also talked about an (administrative council) for the authority, so Abu Ammar transformed this council into state institutions with ministries, legislative, judicial, and executive authorities. He also bypassed Oslo by establishing an airport, and so on.

Now, despite the significant difference between a self-governing authority whose reference is the Oslo Agreement and the PLO and a committee to manage Gaza with a reference of the executive council headed by Miladinov and a higher world peace council headed by Trump, attempts are being made to bestow a national character on the committee by adopting the name (Palestinian National Committee) instead of (Palestinian Technocratic Committee) stated in the initiative. The committee has also tried to change its logo, which features a rooster drawing, to adopt the authority's logo (the eagle and the Palestinian flag), which Israel also rejected.

In any case, the important aspect is not the name and logo but the role and function on the ground. It is noticeable that, so far, despite the passage of about a month since its announcement, the committee is still stationed in Cairo and has not been allowed by Israel to enter the Strip. It is also unclear whether it has begun to form specialized administrative teams in the areas it is supposed to operate in, noting that each of its members is like a minister and should have a strategy and a work plan. Additionally, we have not observed any presence of the committee at the Rafah crossing, nor have the residents of the Strip felt any presence or activity from it.

We know that a month is insufficient to judge the committee's effectiveness, especially in light of the Israeli obstacles, but what we hope is that the committee works in a manner consistent with its name (the National Committee), although we have reservations about this name not out of questioning the members' status, who are respected by everyone, but so that no failure is attributed to the entire Palestinian cause, suggesting that the Palestinians have failed even in managing the Gaza Strip. We also hope that the factions will cease issuing statements that place more burdens on the committee than it can bear, expecting it to succeed in what the factions collectively failed to achieve, knowing that the committee is not primarily under the authority of America and Israel and the High Representative Miladinov.