Report finds Gaza needs more than $71bn in next decade for recovery

More than $71bn will be needed over the next 10 years for recovery and reconstruction in Gaza after Israel’s genocidal war on the territory, a new report says.

In their final Gaza Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment (RDNA), released on Monday, the European Union and United Nations asserted that the conflict has had a “catastrophic impact on human development” and left the enclave desperately in need of huge sums of money in the immediate future.

The report found that $26.3bn will be required in the first 18 months of Gaza’s reconstruction to restore essential services, rebuild critical infrastructure and support its economic recovery.

“Physical infrastructure damages are estimated at $35.2 billion, with economic and social losses amounting to $22.7 billion,” a joint statement by the report’s sponsors said.

Gaza is under a fragile “ceasefire” that was agreed in October. The agreement, which the Israeli military is accused of repeatedly breaching, followed two years of devastating conflict sparked by the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attacks on southern Israel.

The Israeli response – widely condemned for having quickly morphed into an attempt to eradicate Gaza’s 2.3 million people – has killed more than 72,500 people, according to Gaza’s Ministry of Health.

At least 777 people have been killed since the ceasefire took effect, according to the ministry, with 32 killings occurring since the start of April alone. The victims include Al Jazeera journalist Mohammed Wishah, who was killed in a drone strike west of Gaza City on April 8.

Gaza’s Government Media Office said Israel has committed 2,400 violations of the “ceasefire”. These include killings, arrests, blockades and starvation policies.

Entombed

The UN said the Israeli bombardment has generated more than 61 million tonnes of rubble in the besieged and battered strip, leaving entire communities entombed.

According to the RDNA, 371,888 housing units have been destroyed or damaged, more than 50 percent of hospitals in the territory are nonfunctional and nearly all schools have been destroyed or damaged.

Gaza’s economy has contracted by 84 percent, and 1.9 million people have been displaced, often multiple times. More than 60 percent of the population have lost their homes, the assessment found.

The hardest-hit sectors in the strip include “housing, health, education, commerce, and agriculture”, and the conflict has set back human development in Gaza by 77 years, the report said.

Both the UN and the EU have called for Gaza’s reconstruction to be “Palestinian-led” and based on “approaches that actively support the transition of governance to the Palestinian Authority”.

That is a clear rebuke to earlier hints from United States President Donald Trump that Gaza could be cleared and rebuilt as a resort on the Mediterranean Sea.