White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Wednesday that $5 billion pledged by member states of the Gaza Peace Council will be directed towards the reconstruction of Gaza.
Speaking ahead of a meeting of council members in Washington on 18 February, Leavitt said more than 20 countries are expected to attend. She added that the United States would release a full list of participating nations.
“The president will be opening the meeting tomorrow with remarks and will sort of formally be chairing the meeting at the beginning before he departs for Georgia,” she said, describing the funding as a major investment in rebuilding Gaza.
Leavitt characterised the initiative as a significant step forward, saying the administration was already making progress towards what she described as an ambitious reconstruction plan. She referred to earlier discussions in Davos, where a detailed presentation outlining the vision for Gaza’s rebuilding and humanitarian efforts was delivered.
According to Leavitt, security arrangements will form a central part of the upcoming discussions. She said achieving stability on the ground is essential before broader reconstruction and development can take place.
“First, you must achieve security to get to prosperity,” she said.
The Gaza Peace Council was formed under a broader plan introduced in 2025 to co-ordinate ceasefire implementation and post-conflict reconstruction. The board was formally established during a charter-signing ceremony at the World Economic Forum in Davos on 22 January 2026, where U.S. President Donald Trump ratified the charter alongside founding members.
Partially endorsed by UN Security Council Resolution 2803 in relation to its Gaza mandate, the council comprises around 26 founding member states, although some sources report up to 35 participants or signatories. The group includes countries from the Middle East, Asia, parts of Europe and Latin America.
Observers have noted that the council’s structure - which operates with limited formal UN oversight despite Security Council backing for certain functions - has raised questions about its institutional independence. No new official statement from the United Nations has addressed recent concerns regarding the council’s autonomy or its relationship to existing UN-led processes.
A U.S.-backed ceasefire has been in place in Gaza since October 10, halting Israel’s two-year war that has killed more than 72,000 people - mostly women and children - and injured over 171,000 others since October 2023.
Despite the ceasefire, Gaza’s Health Ministry says Israeli forces have committed hundreds of violations through shelling and gunfire, killing 603 Palestinians and injuring 1,618 others.
U.S. President Donald Trump said he does not think he will need China's help to end the war with Iran as he le...
Britain will introduce new legislation aimed at strengthening ties with the European Union as Prime Minister Keir Starmer seeks to rebuild economic...
Türkiye has completed formal preparations to begin direct commercial activity w...
A new trilateral energy partnership involving Uzbekneftegaz, Azerbaijan’s state oil company SOCAR and BP has been announced during Uzbekistan...
U.S. President Donald Trump’s three-day summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping ...
The U.S. President’s Board of Peace has presented Hamas with a written proposal on disarmament, two sources said, a step the group has so far refused as Washington presses ahead with its plan for Gaza’s future.
The United States and international partners have announced billions of dollars in pledges to rebuild Gaza but many Palestinians remain sceptical about whether the funds will translate into tangible improvements for daily life.
Kuwait arrested four members of an IRGC-linked group as they tried to enter the country by sea, the Gulf state's KUNA news agency reported on Tuesday. Meanwhile, a senior IRGC officer said Iran had expanded its definition of the Strait of Hormuz to include a far wider area.
Biological samples from an Italian man were transferred to a specialist hospital for testing on Tuesday, after he was suspected of contracting hantavirus. Meanwhile, World Health Organization boss Tedros Ghebreyesus said there were “no sign” of a larger outbreak linked to the MV Hondius cruise.
Exclusive flight-tracking material obtained by AnewZ has raised new questions about French military aircraft movements linked to President Emmanuel Macron’s recent diplomacy with Armenia and the wider scope of France’s defence cooperation with Yerevan.
Just one week after a similar move by Australia, Greece announced that it will ban access to social media for children under the age of 15 from January 1, 2027, as governments around the world weigh tougher rules amid growing concerns over mental health, safety and screen addiction.
U.S. President Donald Trump said he does not think he will need China's help to end the war with Iran as he left for a high-stakes summit in Beijing on Tuesday, as hopes for a lasting peace deal dwindled and Tehran tightened its grip over the Strait of Hormuz.
Türkiye has completed formal preparations to begin direct commercial activity with Armenia, a Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Wednesday, marking another step in the slow but steady normalisation of ties between the two neighbours.
A new trilateral energy partnership involving Uzbekneftegaz, Azerbaijan’s state oil company SOCAR and BP has been announced during Uzbekistan Energy Week 2026 in Tashkent.
The number of dead Caspian seals discovered along Kazakhstan’s section of the Caspian Sea continues to rise, with the latest findings reported near the Karazhanbas and Buzachi oilfields in the Mangystau region.
This is the third and final article in AnewZ’s series examining the fight for access to treatment for children with Duchenne muscular dystrophy in Georgia, and the irreversible human cost of delay.
Former Georgia rugby captain Merab Sharikadze has been banned for 11 years after an anti-doping probe uncovered sample swapping in the national team. Several other players and the Georgian Rugby Union were also sanctioned
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment