The government plans to develop a new urban area around Rafah to replace the border area demolished as part of the army's campaign against Islamist militants in the Sinai Peninsula, Al-Ahram Arabic news website reported.
President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi ratified a law on Thursday forming a committee to plan the new urban area. It will also assess the economic needs of families displaced earlier this month when the military formed a buffer zone to combat Islamist militants and destroy tunnels it says are used by them to smuggle weapons and supplies from the Gaza Strip.
The buffer zone was created in the wake of a militant attack on 24 October that left at least 31 army personnel dead near Rafah.
Forming the committee will be representatives from the intelligence service and the ministries of interior, planning, finance, local development, supply, and social solidarity, and the social development fund.
Compensation for hundreds of displaced families will cost the government LE1 billion, said El-Sisi earlier this month.
