RAMALLAH, Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh received today the EU Special Representative for Middle East Peace Process Sven Koopmans, and discussed with him the Gaza reconstruction file and the efforts to revive the political process.

During the meeting at the Prime Minister’s Office in Ramallah, Shtayyeh stressed the importance of filling the political vacuum, and urged the EU to take the initiative and revive the political process in Palestine, which he said shall include the International Quartet.

He said a serious peace process should be aimed at finding a just and comprehensive solution to the Palestinian issue and paving the way for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on the pre-1967 borders, with Jerusalem as its capital.

Meantime, Shtayyeh pointed out that a technical team has been formed to work on the Gaza reconstruction file, stressing the importance of having international guarantees of no further Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip.

The Prime Minister reaffirmed that the Palestinian leadership was committed to holding the national elections, calling on the international community especially the EU countries to press Israel to allow the elections to be held in Jerusalem. He added that the elections are a gateway to end the division and embody national unity.

Shtayyeh urged the whole world, especially Europe, to take a firm and serious stance against the Israeli occupation, to stop settlement expansion and occupation’s violations against our people, and to stop the forceful evictions of the Palestinian people in Jerusalem and in the rest of occupied Palestine.

Source: Palestinian News & Info Agency