European backers put on a show of support for the Palestinian Authority and the push for a two-state solution on April 20, as global attention largely remains focused in in Iran.
More than 60 nations sent representatives to Brussels to discuss with Palestinian Prime Minister Mohamed Mustafa stability, security and long-term peace in Israel, the occupied West Bank and Gaza.
"We meet in the middle of a storm. But we cannot abandon the compass," said Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot at the start of a meeting of the "Global Alliance for the Two-State Solution.”
"We must hold the course, because the Israeli-Palestinian issue is affecting the Middle East as a whole and also the rest of the world."
The European Union is the biggest financial backer of the Palestinians and, despite having reservations about the Ramallah-based authorities, believes they have a key role to play in post-war Gaza.
"We can and must do more to ensure respect for human rights and accountability, to protect the Palestinian people and to put the two-state solution solidly on the table again," EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said.
Attending the Brussels conference, Palestinian premier Mustafa said it was happening "at a moment defined by both immense tragedy and a narrow, but real opportunity to move from war toward a just and lasting peace.”
Mustafa insisted that post-conflict Gaza remained an "integral part of the state of Palestine" and that governance should eventually be handed over to the Palestinian Authority.
The U.S. in October struck a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas aimed at ending the Gaza war.
In January, Washington announced that the ceasefire had moved into its second phase. This phase envisages the disarmament of Hamas and a gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.
