What lies ahead of the Gaza Strip, that has been converted into rubble after 15 months of bombing by the Israel Defence Force?
What lies ahead of the Gaza Strip, that has been converted into rubble after 15 months of bombing by the Israel Defence Force?
Will it be turned into a Middle-East Riviera, as proposed by US President Donald Trump?
Will the Gaza Strip once again become a vibrant and developed area inhabited by its more than 2 million residents, as the Arab League envisioned?
Arab League Gaza Strip Reconstruction Plan
The seven-member Arab bloc approved its plan to reconstruct the ruined Gaza Strip in a recent meeting held at its headquarters in Cairo.
The proposed 53 billion dollars Gaza Strip reconstruction plan will have three stages.
Gaza Strip Reconstruction Plan-Phase 1
In the first stage of six months the rubbles from Salah al-Din Street, connecting the northern and southern tips of the Gaza Strip will be removed, the territory will be demined and unexploded ammunition will be defused.
Besides, 200,000 temporary container houses for 1.2 million people will be constructed and more than 60,000 partially damaged houses will be repaired. It will cost 3 billion dollars.
Gaza Strip Reconstruction Plan-Phase 2
The second phase of the Gaza Strip reconstruction project will last for 2 years and cost $20 billion. About 400,000 permanent residential units to accommodate more than 2 million people will be constructed in the second phase.
Besides, utility networks like sewage, electricity, telecommunication, etc would be restored.
Gaza Strip Reconstruction Plan-Phase 3
In the third phase of the Gaza Strip reconstruction, the remaining residential units will be constructed.
Besides, an industrial park, a fishing and commercial seaport, and an airport will be built. It will cost $30 billion.
Israel, US Reject Arab League Plan
While Hamas has accepted the Arab League reconstruction plan, except for that part which is related to the future administration of the enclave, the US and Israel have rejected it.
Taking to social media platform X, Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Oren Marmorstein said that “it fails to address the realities of the situation following October 7th, 2023, remaining rooted in outdated perspectives.”
He wrote in a post, that the statement issued at the end of the Arab League summit fails to address “Hamas’ brutal terrorist attack, which resulted in thousands of Israeli deaths and hundreds of kidnappings, is not mentioned, nor is there any condemnation of this murderous terrorist entity, despite its well-documented atrocities and the threat it poses to Israel and the region.”
The statement issued at the Emergency Summit of the Extraordinary Arab Summit fails to address the realities of the situation following October 7th, 2023, remaining rooted in outdated perspectives. Notably, Hamas’ brutal terrorist attack, which resulted in thousands of Israeli… pic.twitter.com/gJp4gvUERJ
— Oren Marmorstein (@OrenMarmorstein) March 4, 2025
Rejecting the Arab League plan, National Security Council spokesman Brian Hughes said in a statement, “The current proposal does not address the reality that Gaza is currently uninhabitable and residents cannot humanely live in a territory covered in debris and unexploded ordnance.”
Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not yet made his stand clear on the Gaza Strip reconstruction plan. He only said that supports Donald Trump’s plan for “a different Gaza”.
When Will Gaza Strip Go To Polls?
However, the future administration of the enclave may prove to be the most contentious issue.
While Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has pleaded that the elections for the Gaza Strip, West Bank, and East Jerusalem be held soon, analysts believe, he has only complicated the issue further by adding East Jerusalem, which is under the control of Tel Aviv.
Analysts believe Israel will never vacate East Jerusalem or hold elections there, forget about returning the biblical-era city to Palestine. It may further provoke the Jewish state to take some more drastic steps.
Hamas has principally agreed to elections in the Gaza Strip and West Bank, now under the control of the PA.
Will Hamas Be Disarmed?
The militant organisation captured the Gaza Strip by attacking the PA, killing more than a dozen of Fateh office bearers and capturing the enclave in 2007.
However, the Yahiya Sinwar-controlled militant organisation has rejected the idea of disarming. It has said in the most unambiguous terms that it would never surrender or return arms, come what may.
When Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the IDF to attack the Gaza Strip on October 9, 2023, he said that the main objective of the attack was to destroy and disarm Hamas so that it could never again target the Jewish nation.
More than 48,000 people, mostly civilians, including women and children have been killed in the Hamas-Israel Gaza Strip War.
Israel attacked the enclave after Hamas fighters fired thousands of missiles, breached the border, and stormed Israel, on October 7, 2023, killing more than 1,200 people, mostly civilians, including women and children, and taking about 250 people hostage.
The hostages included a nine-month-old child as well as 80-year-old senior citizens. The fighters were also accused of sexually abusing the women.
Analysts believe, that implementing the Arab League reconstruction plan will be an uphill task. The most difficult part will be holding elections as Hamas may refuse to hand over the reins of the administration.
The most difficult part of the plan may be disarming the Hamas.
Will Israel again send its troops to disarm the militant outfit?