U.S. Unveils Plan to Rebuild Gaza, Says It Needs at Least $25 Billion

The Trump administration outlined an ambitious vision to rebuild the Gaza Strip at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where Jared Kushner presented the proposal and formally inaugurated the president’s "Board of Peace." Kushner’s presentation featured slides depicting gleaming skyscrapers on Gaza’s coast and entirely new cities, and said rebuilding would require at least $25 billion, according to the proposal.

He said Gaza would be rebuilt in phases starting with the south and that the southern city of Rafah could be rebuilt in two to three years. "We said, ‘Let’s plan for catastrophic success,’" he said, adding there was no "Plan B." At this point, however, those ideas exist mostly on paper.

Major obstacles remain: Hamas has not agreed to disarm or hand over control of Gaza’s security, the United States has struggled to recruit countries to contribute soldiers to a proposed peacekeeping force, and it is unclear who would provide the billions the plan would require. At the Davos ceremony, Ali Shaath, head of a Palestinian committee the board would oversee, said the Rafah border crossing with Egypt is scheduled to reopen next week, but Israel has not confirmed that and Israeli authorities have vowed to keep the border closed until Hamas returns the body of Ran Gvili.

Hamas has agreed to hand over day-to-day governance to Mr. Shaath’s committee but not control of the enclave’s security.

Key Topics

World, Gaza Strip, Jared Kushner, Rafah, Hamas, World Economic Forum