Prime Minister of the caretaker government Salam Fayyad called Thursday for lifting the siege on Gaza.

Following talks with South African foreign affairs chief Ibrahim Ismail Ibrahim in his office in the West Bank city of Ramallah, Fayyad affirmed the necessity of lifting the siege to enable the Palestinian Authority to begin rebuilding Gaza by implementing developmental and vital projects similar to those being accomplished in the West Bank.

He reiterated his call to the international community to make Israel abide to the rules of international law and a total and comprehensive halt of settlements, particularly in Jerusalem and its surroundings, in a way that would restore credibility to the peace process by guaranteeing its ability to end the occupation, and thus establishing a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital on the 1967 borders.

Fayyad updated Ibrahim on the latest efforts being made by the Palestinian Authority to establish the foundations of an independent Palestinian state by building infrastructure, affirming the determination of the Palestinians and the PA to continue moving forward as scheduled.