NNA -nbsp;A number of European states, concerned Arab countries and the United States are working on a concept for a unified Palestinian government that could attract reconstruction funds, Norway#39;s foreign minister said in an interview in Davos.nbsp;
quot;A number of countries are working with us… trying to build a broad unity government,quot; Espen Barth Eide said, without naming the specific countries.nbsp;
Norway was of the view that a unified Palestinian territory should be run by the Palestinian Authority, but quot;prefacing everything, it has to be what the Palestinians wantquot;, he added.nbsp;
Norway served as a facilitator in the 1992-1993 talks between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) that led to the Oslo Accords in 1993.nbsp;
The Palestinian Authority, set up under that agreement, exercises limited self-rule in the West Bank and held talks with Israel on a Palestinian state before they collapsed in 2014. Hamas has ruled in Gaza since 2007 and is sworn to Israel#39;s destruction.nbsp;
Since the Oslo talks, Norway has chaired a donor group coordinating international assistance to the Palestinian territories, the Ad Hoc Liaison Committee (AHLC), and worked with others to try to revive a diplomatic channel between Israel and the Palestinians.nbsp;
Barth Eide said work on a two-state solution was becoming urgent as the conflict was spreading in the region, but that only the United States and the Israeli people could influence Israel#39;s position.nbsp;
quot;What we can do is work on Palestinian unity, and think about models with interested countries,quot; he said.nbsp;
Calls for a two-state solution have grown in the wake of attacks on Israel on Oct. 7 in which Hamas gunmen killed 1,200 people and took 240 hostages, prompting an Israeli bombardment and ground offensive against Hamas-ruled Gaza in which health authorities in the territory say more than 24,000 people have been killed.nbsp;
A two-state agreement would create a state for the Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip alongside Israel. Israel has said a Palestinian state must be demilitarized so as not to threaten its security.–agenciesnbsp;
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