The U.S. will make "significant contributions" for the reconstruction of Gaza and promised to repair ties with its people by reopening its embassy in Jerusalem after the recent fighting between Israel and Hamas, U.S. State Secretary Antony Blinken said, as reported by BBC Wednesday.
More than 250 people were killed in 11 days of conflict between Israel's military and Gaza militants earlier this month. The vast majority of the victims were in Gaza.
At least 12 people in Israel, including two children, were killed by Hamas rocket fire from Gaza, the Israeli Defense Force said.
According to Politico, Blinken announced $110 million in new economic aid to the people of Gaza during a visit to Ramallah, the headquarters of the Palestinian Authority. The assistance includes $5.5 million in immediate relief to Gaza.
In Jerusalem, speaking alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Blinken said the U.S. would "work to ensure that Hamas does not benefit" from the aid, CNN reported.
The U.S., Israel, UK and EU have designated Hamas a terrorist group.
Blinken's meeting with Netanyahu marked the first stop of the U.S. official on a trip to the Middle East.
Israeli airstrikes destroyed homes, buildings and vital infrastructures across the Gaza Strip.
The Palestinian Ministry of Public Works said the estimated cost of rebuilding is $150 million, Al Jazeera reported.
United Nations humanitarian workers on the ground in Gaza said it will take weeks to know how much money is needed to rebuild Gaza.
"The biggest need is mental health," Matthias Schmale, Gaza chief of the the U.N. Relief Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees said in an interview with Politico.
The conflict ended Friday with a truce brokered by Egyptian peace negotiators.
Meanwhile, the Palestinian Authority and Pakistan submitted a resolution on the formation of a fact-finding mission that will be voted Thursday when the UNHRC holds a special session on the matter in Geneva, The Jerusalem Post said.
The resolution calls, in particular, for accountability for Israel's actions against Gaza.
