DHAKA: International donors have pledged $5.4bn (£3.4bn) for the Palestinians at a conference in Cairo.

The total, announced by the Norwegian Foreign Minister, Boerge Brende, exceeded the $4bn (£2.5bn) the Palestinian Authority had asked for.

Half the sum would be "dedicated" to work in Gaza, he said, without specifying a use for the other half, reports BBC.

At least 100,000 Gazans lost their homes in the 50-day conflict between Israel and Hamas earlier this year.

Much of the territory's infrastructure was damaged.

Earlier the Palestinian and Egyptian presidents called on Israel to commit to a long-term peace initiative.

Mahmoud Abbas and Abdul Fattah al-Sisi urged Israel to give up land seized in the 1967 Middle East war and accept a fair solution for Palestinian refugees in exchange for full recognition.

The seven-week Gaza conflict, which ended in a truce on 26 August, killed more than 2,100 Palestinians, most of them civilians, the UN says, along with 67 Israeli soldiers and six civilians in Israel.

** New US aid on rebuilding Gaza approved

BDST: 0912 HRS, OCT 13, 2014