The White House said in a statement that the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza will be headed by Ali Shaath, the former Palestinian Deputy Foreign Minister, describing him as “a widely respected technocratic leader who will oversee the rehabilitation of public services, the rebuilding of civil institutions, and the stabilization of daily life in Gaza, while laying the foundations for long-term sustainable governance.”
The statement noted that an executive council was formed to support governance and services, comprising Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, President Trump’s special envoy Steve Wittkopf and his son-in-law Jared Kushner, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, UAE Minister of State for International Cooperation Reem Al Hashimi, Qatari diplomat Ali Al Thawadi, Egyptian intelligence chief Hassan Rashad, Bulgarian diplomat residing in the UAE and former UN envoy Nikolay Mladenov, businessman Yakir Gabay, and Dutch politician Sigrid Kaag.
He noted that Trump will chair the executive council that will oversee the Peace Council, and that the council includes US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Weitkov, Kushner, Blair, billionaire Mark Rowan, World Bank Group President Ajay Banga, and US political advisor Robert Gabriel.
The statement said that Mladenov would assume the role of High Representative for Gaza, linking the Peace Council to the National Alliance for the Gaza government, while Major General Jasper Jeffers would lead the international stabilization force.
According to the White House, the United States has appointed Aryeh Lightstone and Josh Greenbaum as senior advisors to the Peace Council, to oversee "strategy and day-to-day operations," adding that more members of the Executive Council and the Gaza Executive Council will be announced in the coming weeks.
In this context, Saudi Arabia welcomed on Friday the announcement of the start of the "second phase" of the comprehensive peace plan in the Gaza Strip, and the formation of the "Palestinian National Committee" to manage the Strip as a temporary transitional body.
Hours earlier, Ali Shaath, head of the Palestinian National Committee for the Administration of the Gaza Strip, announced that the committee had officially begun its work from the Egyptian capital, Cairo, in preparation for moving to Gaza, confirming that it had received promises from "influential countries to provide substantial financial support."
This committee is one of the items in US President Donald Trump’s plan to manage the Gaza Strip, following a genocidal war waged against it by Israel with the support of Washington on October 8, 2023, which lasted for two years.
The Saudi Foreign Ministry said in a statement that it "welcomes the announcement of the start of the second phase of the peace plan and the formation of the Palestinian National Committee to manage the Gaza Strip," expressing its welcome for President Trump's announcement of the formation of the Peace Council and his commitment to the withdrawal of the Israeli occupation army and preventing the annexation of any part of the West Bank.
In its statement, Riyadh praised the efforts of mediators in Qatar, Egypt and Turkey to push for sustainable peace in the region.
On Wednesday, Egypt, Qatar and Turkey, in a joint statement, welcomed the completion of the formation of the Palestinian technocratic committee to administer the Gaza Strip, headed by Ali Shaath.
The Saudi Foreign Ministry statement stressed the importance of "maintaining the institutional and geographical link between the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, ensuring the unity of Gaza and rejecting any attempts to divide it," emphasizing "support for the Palestinian National Committee to perform its duties in managing the daily affairs of the Strip's residents."
The statement called for the need to "establish a ceasefire, ensure unhindered access for humanitarian aid, and quickly launch early recovery and reconstruction efforts."
The statement concluded by emphasizing that these steps should pave the way for "the return of the Palestinian National Authority to assume its responsibilities in the sector, leading to the end of the occupation and the realization of an independent Palestinian state."
The Israeli genocide left more than 71,000 martyrs and more than 171,000 wounded Palestinians, most of them children and women, and massive destruction affecting 90 percent of the civilian infrastructure.
