Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, met with James Wolfensohn, the Quartet’s disengagement envoy, in Gaza, in order to coordinate between the Palestinian Authority and Israel to ensure a ‘peaceful’ withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and northern West Bank areas.
Abbas said that Wolfensohn is conducting extensive efforts in order to coordinate between the Palestinians and Israel, and added that the P.A will provide him with the needed cooperation in order to achieve this aim.
Also, Abbas added that he also discussed with Wolfensohn economical projects which the P.A intends to create in order to effectively use the evacuated lands.
“He [Wolfensohn] conducted significant and important effortsâ€Â, Abbas stated, “We will fully cooperate with him, in order to succeed his mission and goalsâ€Â.
Wolfensohn stated that much of the rubble, the cement and bricks, could be reused in Gaza, adding that this could be an opportunity to rebuild some of the Palestinian areas when the rubble is positively reused. ÂÂ
Palestinian Cabinet Minister in charge of coordinating the withdrawal, Mohammad Dahlan, said that the Palestinian Authority is willing to assist Israel in removing the rubble, but it will not allow it to be burried in its land.
“If there is some use of the rubble, we will look into how we can use some of itâ€Â, Dahlan said, “the important issue here is that this rubble should not remain or be buried in the Palestinian landsâ€Â, Dahlan stated following talks with Wolfensohn.
