Rebuilding Gaza
Articles from Al Monitor and the Anadolu Agency.
From satellite images the UN’s Institute for Training and Research detected hundreds of razed buildings and destroyed agricultural areas across Gaza. There has been much more damage since July 25, 2014.
Gaza war bill estimated at $5 billion
The Gaza Strip will have to undergo a third reconstruction in fewer than seven years, which will test the ability of the Palestinian factions to cooperate and respond effectively.
By Omar Shaban, trans. Pascale el Khoury, Al Monitor
August 11, 2014
Thirty days after the start of Operation Protective Edge on June 8, a three-day cease-fire was announced, and renewed again on Aug. 11. However, the end of the war will reveal a reality that may be harsher than the war itself. The Gaza Strip, a small densely populated area, is perhaps the only place in the world that suffered three devastating wars requiring extensive reconstruction three times in seven years.
Although the assessment of the losses has yet to begin because of the continuing military operations, initial statistics issued by international and governmental institutions are shocking. These figures are expected to double with the start of the assessment of the losses in the field. According to statistics from the Ministry of Public Works in Gaza, 7,000 housing units have been destroyed and 30,000 units have been damaged, about 5,000 of which will no longer be inhabitable. This is in addition to the destruction of roads, water and electricity systems, household items, identification papers, photos and certificates, as well as dozens of factories, mosques, schools, health clinics, hospitals and sewage plants.
Moreover, UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refuges) statistics indicate that the Israeli military operation forced 400,000 Gazans to leave their homes, including 250,000 who took refuge in 18 UNRWA schools, and that 150,000 citizens are now living in public parks, hospitals, churches and on the street. This third war took place in light of the continuous Israeli blockade that was imposed in June 2007 and following the Egyptian campaign to destroy the tunnels between Gaza and the Sinai Peninsula, which used to be an important source of goods and revenues. Losses were estimated just two weeks after the start of this latest Israeli war at $3 billion, according to a statement by Deputy Prime Minister of Economic Affairs Mohammad Mustafa, while the Palestinian unity government estimated these losses at $5 billion.
The reconstruction process will face numerous dilemmas, such as prioritizing relevant interventions and providing necessary funding. An estimated 12,000 displaced families will not be able to return to their homes and will be forced to stay in schools, which implies that classes will not start for at least another year. This will turn the entire Gaza Strip into a massive refugee camp with tens of thousands of tents occupying vast areas of agricultural lands.
It’s also worth mentioning the spread of millions of tons of waste, causing an environmental and health disaster. Another problem is related to the power outages because of the suspension of the only power plant in Gaza after the fuel storage tanks were destroyed. Repairing these tanks will require an estimated year’s work, while ready-to-use tanks cannot be imported given their huge size.
The current available electricity does not exceed 10% of the needs of the Gaza Strip. Electricity is provided by two sources: Egypt supplies 30 megawatts and the Israeli power grid provides 40 megawatts instead of 120 megawatts because of the suspension of seven power lines out of the existing 10 lines. It’s imperative to provide alternative power sources as soon as possible to accelerate the pace of reconstruction. Available alternatives include repairing the Israeli defected power grid lines, increasing the purchased quantity and/or leasing a floating power plant off the Gaza coast.
On the social level, numerous problems are likely to appear eventually, if not immediately. The displaced will be unable to recognize their destroyed or damaged homes given the lack of maps showing the property boundaries for each home and the loss of supporting documents.
Which is my house? Photo by Mahmud Hams/AFP/Getty Image
Moreover, problems such as health, psychological and social issues will emerge as a result of the living conditions in overcrowded schools and lack of privacy for each family, besides an insufficient level of available health and psychological services. The social services system will experience extra pressure because of thousands of children newly orphaned and tens of thousands of injured, most of them with a disability.
Gaza’s reconstruction process and its political context will represent a major challenge for the Palestinian political system and a practical test of its ability to meet the people’s expectations and needs. This process is expected to lead to intense competition between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority (PA), not only over donor funds but also the use of money for reaping political gains and improving their position within the circles of the Palestinian street.
The reconstruction process will also entail competition between international and official institutions on mutual coordination efforts and which party is authorized to receive the funds.
Moreover, the polarization in the region between Turkey, Egypt, Qatar and Saudi Arabia will extend to the reconstruction process as was the case in the cease-fire negotiations. This competition will be governed and influenced by the outcome of the truce negotiations: Will the Israeli blockade be lifted? Will this happen gradually, or immediately in its entirety? Will raw materials be allowed to enter from Egypt or Israel, or both?
The delay in facing the repercussions of the war by both parties of the political system — the PA and Hamas — will directly confront them with the tens of thousands affected by the war; those who have lost their homes and family members and cannot afford a delay in assistance. The Palestinian political system faces a historical turning point; either to consecrate the fragile unity or endure an endless state of separation.
Omar Shaban is the founder and director of Palthink for Strategic Studies. An independent researcher and analyst specializing in Palestinian affairs and the Arab-Israeli conflict, he writes about developments in Palestine and the Arab world.
Where does all this go? Mixed up in this mess will be the families’ documents – and possibly corpses of family members, pets, livestock. Photo of what remains of Sherjaiya by Mahmud Hams/AFP/Getty Images)
Blockade must be lifted to rebuild Gaza, says UN official
Economic assistance to war-torn Gaza is not enough to provide a long-term solution to the decades old conflict, experts say
By Izabela Kuczynska & Ilgin Karlidag, Anadolu Agency
August 11, 2014
ANKARA–With more than a month passed since Israel began its ongoing military offensive on Gaza, and with hundreds of thousands Palestinians displaced, figures have begun to emerge about how much rebuilding the battered and besieged Gaza strip will cost.
Some UN officials believe it will be $410 million. Palestinian Deputy Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa believes the cost will be far higher, putting the bill at $6 billion. The head of UN’s Relief and Works Agency Chris Gunness however, says it is too early to know, or even estimate, the amount needed to reconstruct Gaza. He also believes that funding the reconstruction is not the main barrier to Gaza’s recovery.
“The one thing we can be certain of is that we will need to lift the blockade if we are to rebuild Gaza,” Gunness says. “If they fail to lift the blockade, the peace that we hope to achieve may be short lived.”
At least 11,855 housing units in Gaza have been destroyed or severely damaged by Israeli attacks and at least 425,000 people are now displaced in emergency shelters or with host families, according to a report published by the U.N.’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs on Sunday.
Palestinian firefighters try to extinguish a fire destroying the cargo terminal at Karni Crossing after it was shelled by Israeli tanks, July 12, 2014. Photo by Hatem Moussa/ AP.
Hugh Lovatt, from the European Council on Foreign Relations’ the Middle East Peace Process project, tells Anadolu Agency that although funding Gaza’s reconstruction is necessary; it is not enough.
“Funding for the reconstruction in Gaza is basically funding for Israel’s continued occupation,” Lovatt says. “We rebuild Gaza and then Israel comes in and blows everything up in the next war.”
In 2012 Qatar’s emir Sheik Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani made a trip to Gaza, the first made by a head of state since Hamas took control in 2007, where he pledged $400 million to build housing complexes and rehabilitate roads in Gaza.
However, addressing the economic side without addressing the deeper political issue will not lead anywhere because Israel and Egypt control crossing points through which material would be brought in to Gaza, according to Lovatt.
A long-term solution to the conflict would require the international community and the EU to change its policies towards Hamas, Lovatt says.
“The policy of boycotting Hamas, of not having any contact with it, is a failure and has not worked,” Lovatt says.
It was hoped that a set of negotiations initiated in July 2013 might break the political stand-off but despite months of talks, they failed to reach a final status on the conflict.
“The last round of peace negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians completely neglected not only Hamas but also neglected the notion of Gaza in its entirety,” said Lovatt. “During the nine months, Gaza was hardly ever mentioned.”
Monday saw a temporary break in the fighting, with a new Egypt-brokered 72-hour ceasefire between Palestinian resistance groups and Israel coming into effect. Previous ceasefires have failed to materialize into anything more permanent, with fighting resuming almost immediately.
At least 1939 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli attacks on Gaza since July 7, while more than 10,000 others have been injured.
Israel says “Operation Protective Edge” – its deadliest offensive on the Gaza Strip in six years – is aimed at halting rocket attacks from Gaza.
According to Israeli figures, at least 64 soldiers were killed in battles with Palestinian fighters in the Gaza Strip and three civilians in rocket attacks.