(Adnkronos) – Italy’s government opposes the plan by israel’s far-right government to evacuate Palestinians and step up military operations in the Gaza Strip to remove ruling militant Islamist group Hamas, which has drawn international criticism.
“Rather than Israel’s plan, Italy identifies with the Egyptian plan, supported by all Arab countries, for the reconstruction of Gaza and achieving the goal of ‘two peoples, two states,” Tajani told Start Sky TG24 on Friday.
In talks with Egypt’s president Abel Fattah al-Sisi in Cairo late last month, Tajani voiced Italy’s support for the 53 billion dollar plan to rebuild the Palestinian coastal enclave without depopulating it, Tajani recalled.
“Our thinking is different from that of the Netanyahu plan,” said Tajani, referring to Israel’s premier Benjamin Netanyahu.
“The Italian government supports the Arab countries’ very different project that was prepared by the Egyptians. We are extremely concerned about the conditions of the Palestinian population,” Tajani underlined.
Tajani accused Hamas of using Palestinian civilians (as human shields) and “doing nothing” to protect them.
“Many Palestinians are discontented with Hamas and we say that it must stay out of the future of Palestine,” Tajani said.
Italy is in contact with and is helping the Palestinian Authority – which has expressed willingness to be involvement in the Egyptian plan to reconstruct Gaza, Tajani noted.
“We are ready to give even more help to the PA and are also doing so financially and through the training that our paramilitary Carabinieri police are giving the PA police,” he said.
Tajani said the government is pressuring Israel to allow the Food for Gaza programme coordinated by Italy and involving the UN World Food Programme and the Red Cross to re-start supplying food to the blockaded and embattled Palestinian territory amid fears it is slipping to famine.
“We are doing our utmost to get Italian humanitarian aid back into Gaza,” Tajani said.
“We need to get results: to obtain a ceasefire, free the remaining Israeli hostages (in Gaza) who have been in the hands of terrorists since (the) 7 October (2023 cross-border attack) and to allow the civilian population to receive all the humanitarian aid it needs,” Tajani underlined.
“I had a long phone conversation yesterday with Israel’s foreign minister urging the country to allow the resumption of the Italian operation Food for Gaza, which previously had success with the support of Israel’s government and the PA,” Tajani said.
As part of Italy’s efforts to resume its Food for Gaza operation, later on Friday, Tajani was set to hold phone talks with PA prime minister Mohammed Mustafa, Tajani concluded.
