Al Jazeera Special Coverage Gaza Promises and Reality – Reconstruction and future

Israel's bombardment of Gaza has caused an unprecedented level of destruction. The UN and the World Bank estimate that more than 70 billion dollars are going to be needed over the next decade to help the strip recover. Human development has been set back by 77 years, while life expectancy has plummeted to just 40 years of age. On day five of our series, Gaza Promises and Reality, we're looking at the state of reconstruction and what the future holds. The phased roll out of US President Donald Trump's 20point plan has grown to halt. So as any effort to rebuild Gaza's roads and facilities despite promises from the Board of Peace, it's over to Hanim Mahmood and the team in Gaza. Thank you and welcome to our special coverage live from Gaza City. It has been thousand days since Israel genocidal war started. thousand days of bombs, death, and destruction. For the people of Gaza, there is no end in sight. The US backed border of peace was established in January to lead the Gaza reconstruction efforts and oversee the US ceasefire agreement. The three-phase plan was endorsed by the UN Security Council. It was meant to see Israel's gradual withdrawal and Palestinian transitional administration installed. Noda begins our coverage with the following report. Palestinians welcomed the Board of Peace even though it didn't promise an end to Israeli occupation. It did however promise an end to Israeli killing and starvation as well as plan for recovery. 6 months on, Palestinians say all of this amounted to nothing. And the evidence is compelling. Instead of withdrawing from Gaza, Israel has expanded its control, demolishing entire communities and occupying more territory. We were at 50%, we moved to 60%, and my directive is to move to first 70%. Let's start with that. Squeeze them from all sides. We will deal with what's left later. Israel's unlawful blockade of Gaza remains in place. Only third of the eight trucks that Israel committed to allowing into the strip each day are entering. The work of aid agencies is severely restricted and Israel has banned several organizations, including Doctors Without Borders. The entire population of Gaza is now at extreme risk of famine. Nearly 400,000 people still survive on just one meal day, and 62% of primary healthc care medications are out of stock. The killings also continue. Israeli forces have killed at least 1,000 Palestinians during the so-called ceasefire in place since October 2025. Where does this leave the Board of Peace? The body has failed to ensure Israeli compliance. Instead, it's focused on disarming Palestinian factions without offering any guarantees in return. The board is also out of money. The billions of dollars countries pledged have not arrived. sign perhaps that there are growing doubts that the board can deliver. Israel is clear though on its preferred path forward. So what remains will be ruins. In the end there will be immigration from there. For Palestinians in Gaza, survival remains the focus while recovery and freedom increasingly feel like distant dream. Mur Al Jazer. When the US brokered ceasefire was announced, it was presented as the beginning of new chapter for Gaza. One that would see hostilities end, humanitarian aid increased, and reconstruction began. The first phase of the agreement included the exchange of Israeli captives held in Gaza for Palestinians detinees held in Israeli presence alongside partial redeployment of Israeli forces and commitment to expand humanitarian access. But many of the promises that were expected to follow have yet to materialize. Aid has remained limited. Reconstruction has not begun on scale envisioned and negotiations over the next phase remain deadlock. One of the key issues dividing the two sides is the future of Hamas armed wing and the question of this army. Talaboom has this report for us. As Gaza waits to be rebuilt after years of war, one central question has emerged in negotiations for path forward. The future of Hamas's weapons. For Israel, disarming the group has become condition for reconstruction and what it calls new reality in Gaza. For Hamas, however, weapons are tied to broader political struggle that it says remains unresolved. Between those positions, Palestinians remain divided. Regarding disarmament, we seek the greater good of the Palestinian people. Weapons should be under the authority of legitimate governing body capable of maintaining law and order, stability, and providing decent quality of life. Our people have already endured more than enough suffering. We cannot debate the legitimacy of the resistance weapons as long as the occupation persists. These weapons remain both right and means of protection and occupation first and then weapons can be discussed. At its core, the debate is about competing visions of security for Gaza. For Israel, security begins with demilitarizing the group. For Hamas, it's linked to ending the conditions that gave rise to armed resistance. think disarmament is merely pretext. It is not necessarily linked to stability. When Gaza was under Israeli occupation before 2005, Palestinian factions were manufacturing weapons despite being under their watch. Yet, Israel was unable to bring the issue of armed resistance to an end. As negotiations continue, the debate over Hamas's weapons is becoming broader discussion about Gaza's political future. For many Palestinians, the question is no longer simply whether weapons should remain or disappear. It's whether any disarmament arrangement could deliver what Gaza has struggled to secure for decades lasting stability, political rights, and an end to recuring cycles of war. Zum al jazer Gaza city Palestine to discuss what has been achieved so far and why the process has stalled and what this means for the future of Gaza I'm joined by Mr. Judah writer and political analyst. Welcome to the program. Thank you for talking to us. Let me start asking by the common question the negotiations taking place in Cairo. Where have they reached and do we do you pin hopes on that or just waste of time? believe that the talks taking place in Cairo it has been dragging for long time and believe it's pointless and valueless simply for the reason that on the other hand mean Israel there is person named Benjamin Netanyahu he is not willing to see any negotiation succeed he has his own project he which is touting for his own public he has statement to provide to the public he is not willing to offer anything to Gaza strip that's why he is keen on stalling and maintaining to keep the talks void and pointless. In addition to that, the statements released by either the leadership of the Israeli occupation army or Benjamin Netanyahu himself who always spoke about the continued military campaign on Gaza and he's willing to uproot more than 70% of the geographical area in order to maintain total control over the strip. Recently talks are about disarming Hamas and is the Israelis are placing it at the top obstacle be or moving ahead. Do you believe that it is the only obstacle or there are anything that is unknown to the people? The only obstacle is that Israel is not willing to see Gaza Strip to restore calm or stability. This is merely headline to for their political calculations. It is merely pretext by the Israelis. there are certain understandings or let's say converging views between the Palestinians and there are many terminology about the weapons be it freezing or storing. Yet it the Palestinian narrative or vision is always dashed at the Israeli counterparts which is mainly the wish to maintain Gaza as is in ruins. Speaking about reconstructions as humanitarian issue, it is linked directly to political calculations. To what degree this linkage remains? And do you believe that the reconstruction could be mix of political and humanitarian aspects? If we look at the Gaza Strip from the humanitarian perspective, it is nothing but short of crime against humanity. and all what is should take place in the future is that the Palestinian people should restore their lawful rights. The borders that is endorsed and recognized by the international resolutions which is on the basis of 1967 borders with East Jerusalem at its capital. Therefore, reconstruction cannot be tied to any humanitarian or political issue. The whole world must know that it is political issue in the first place and so long as the political calculations remain, no solutions would be translated on the ground. The Israelis are willing to deepen the humanitarian crisis simply to force people out of Gaza. We'll be talking to you over the coming hours to talk more about it. While headlines maintain promising future for Gaza, the reality on the ground tells very different story. The billions of dollars needed for reconstruction is still nowhere to be seen. Israel has been crushing the economy, controlling the movement of goods and aid. The UN says human development has been set back by 77 years and life expectancy has plummeted to just 40 years. For people here, the future feels oblique. To add to the list, before any progress can be made, great weight needs lifting of Gaza shoulder. Khalili has been finding out more about this. Gaza is in ruins. Since October 2023, more than 80% of the buildings here have been destroyed. That's an estimated 68 million metric tons of rubble. That's the equivalent of the Great Pyramid of Giza multiplied by 11. Cleanup is underway, but progress has been painfully slow. According to the UN, only about 310,000 tons have been cleared so far, less than 0.5% of the total. At the current pace, clearing and processing all of Gaza's rubble would take more than 140 years. AUMbacked initiative is operating at five sites across Gaza. There debris is collected, sorted and processed into reusable material but scaling up is major challenge. We're not yet there in terms of machinery. We're we're not yet there in terms of equipment of capacities. Definitely while we start with the humanitarian we are also planning planning for the early recovery recovery and then reconstruction and among others for example new technologies and this is where innovation is important. How to reuse the entire volume and how to reuse this material for new construction material in the future. The processed material can be used to reopen roads and improve damaged streets, giving practical use to debris scattered across the strip. If we talk about the ongoing projects now, we cannot call them projects or project size. It is kind of emergency projects to save the lives of citizens and to help municipalities provide the minimum of services to citizens. Along with most of Gaza's buildings, much of the heavy machinery needed to clear the rubble has also been destroyed and that won't change until Israel allows equipment and other materials to enter. Rahim Khali, Al Jazer, Gaza City, Palestine. That's it from me, Hani Mahmud, and the team here in Gaza. I'll be back later in the day. For now, it's back to Dohan.