Ban Ki-Moon Asks Palestinian Leaders to Focus on "Building One Palestine"

During his visit to the war-torn Gaza, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon urged the Palestinian leaders to centre their efforts on "building one Palestine".

"This is a great opportunity to unite the West Bank and Gaza under one Palestinian leadership. My visit today to the school and to Gaza has reinforced my conviction that there is no time to lose. There can be no peace in the Middle East, no security for Israel, while the crisis in Gaza festers," he said, The Jewish Press reports.

Ban Ki-Moon clearly wants "one Palestine" - where Hamas and Fatah stand united, with joint supervision of goods moving in and out of Gaza Strip.

Terming the destruction in the region as 'beyond description', he told ministers of the National Consensus Government, "We stand by you. The international community supports your government's efforts to assume the security and governance responsibilities in Gaza,"Dawn.com reports.

Along with officials of the Israeli Defense Forces, he also visited Kibbutz Ein HaShlosha and Nirim - which were the targets of Hamas tunnel terrorists - and took a round of the remains of the tunnels.

Israel opened the border Tuesday to transport the first truck loaded with building material required for post-war reconstruction in Gaza.

IOL.com states that rebuilding could take years as Israel destroyed at least 20,000 homes during the two-month war; Gaza's power station as well as other major buildings have been damaged too.

Key buildings that once stood tall have been reduced to "dense, shallow, uneven mounds of rubble," BBC reports. As winter approaches, thousands of unfortunate families whose homes have been destroyed will have to arrange for alternatives to escape the chilling long nights and heavy rains.