A Palestinian source told Sky News in Arabic on Wednesday that "the US administration has become convinced of the need to strengthen the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank and of the necessity of its existence as a framework for managing the Gaza Strip."
According to the Palestinian source, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government absolutely oppose the American trend and are trying to thwart it.
The Palestinian official added, "It is possible that the management of Gaza will be in the hands of the Palestinian Authority directly or indirectly through the new management committee led by Ali Shaath, which is currently in Egypt."
"There are no US or Board of Peace plans to transfer any supervisory authority to the Palestinian Authority," a person familiar with the talks told Israel Hayom. "But as per UNSCR 2803, the Palestinian Authority can play an important role upon completion of its reform process," they emphasized.
The reports have not received verification from an additional source, and there is no declarative change in the stance of Washington on the Palestinian issue, but a change in outlook may have indeed occurred following the agreement in Iran and pressure that Tehran has been exerting on Washington to bring about calm in the Gaza Strip as well. On Tuesday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi spoke with senior Hamas official Bassem Naim and told him that Iran intends to raise the issue of the Gaza Strip during negotiations with the Americans.
