GAZA, Oct. 19 (Xinhua) -- An Egyptian committee on Tuesday placed the first bids for reconstruction projects in the besieged Gaza Strip, the coastal enclave ruled by the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), said a Palestinian government official.

Naji Sarhan, undersecretary of the Hamas-run Ministry of Public Works and Housing in the Gaza Strip, said in a press statement that the Egyptian reconstruction committee placed the bids in coordination with the ministry.

"The first project includes the reconstruction of the main Gaza seaside road in northern Gaza Strip," Sarhan said, adding that his ministry will coordinate with all concerned parties to finish the project properly.

He added that Palestinian companies will carry out all infrastructure-related work, including paving, water, sewage, rainwater, as well as electricity and communications, and strive to build the seaside road to the best.

For the first time ever, the Egyptian reconstruction committee published bids for reconstruction projects in the Gaza Strip in a Gaza-based newspaper.

The Egyptian committee will provide necessary materials for the project according to Egyptian engineering designs, and the next phase includes preparing designs of a residential city to be established in the northern Gaza Strip.

On Sept. 23, Egypt sent to the Gaza Strip an engineering delegation with reconstruction equipment and vehicles to prepare for the project.

In early June, an Egyptian delegation visited the Gaza Strip to help remove the rubble of buildings destroyed by Israeli fighter jets during the last round of tension with Israel in May.

On May 21, Egypt brokered a ceasefire agreement that ended 11 days of hostility between Israel and Hamas-led militant groups in the Gaza Strip, which killed more than 250 Palestinians and 13 Israelis.

The last round of tension also left large destruction of residential homes, infrastructure and other buildings in Gaza, home to more than two million Palestinians.

After the ceasefire was reached, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi pledged 500 million U.S. dollars in support of the reconstruction of Gaza, with the participation of specialized Egyptian construction companies. Enditem

Related

Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)