Government, Security, and Tools for Rebuilding: NPR

TEL AVIV, Israel – A fragile ceasefire is still holding in the Gaza Strip, but no one can claim to be fully responsible for the torn region.

Gaza lacks an effective government. Hamas is waging battles in the streets with various armed Palestinian factions. Bulldozers and other construction equipment are urgently needed to clear all the rubble left by the two-year-old war, but they are in short supply.

In the open fields outside Gaza’s cities and towns, Israeli forces monitor the situation. They control just over half of Gaza’s territory and periodically open fire when forces believe Palestinians are getting too close to their positions.

Mkhaimer Abu Saada, a political science professor from Gaza, said that the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire overseen by President Trump was welcomed by both Israelis and Palestinians.

But he added, “The easy part has been accomplished. The more complex issues will be in the second phase of this Trump proposal, namely the governance of Gaza, the demilitarization of Gaza as well as the rebuilding and rebuilding of Gaza.”

Abu Saada teaches at Al-Azhar University in Gaza, but left for Cairo shortly after the war began in October 2023. He wants to return home, but does not think he will return anytime soon because the area has been severely damaged.

Ceasefire plan versus reality

The war has destroyed Hamas’ leadership inside Gaza, and the ceasefire plan calls for the formation of a committee of Palestinian technocrats to administer the area on an interim basis.

Egypt says there is now a list of 15 Palestinians who can serve on the committee, adding that the names have been approved by Hamas and Israel.

However, no names have been announced, and it is not clear when the committee will take office, or how much authority it will have to deal with health care, education, water, electricity, and coordination with relief organizations.

Hamas says it accepts the condition contained in the ceasefire agreement that it will not be part of a future government in Gaza, but it remains to be seen how this will be implemented on the ground. Many government employees were supportive of Hamas before the war.

Hamas police in the streets

On the crucial security issue, Hamas’ civilian police are already back on the streets. During the war, they remained largely out of sight to avoid being targeted by Israeli strikes.

Police handle routine tasks such as traffic duty. However, Hamas members have also launched deadly clashes with Palestinian clans, which are essentially armed gangs.

In a video clip widely circulated on social media, Hamas accused eight Palestinian men of collaborating with Israel during the war. The defendants were blindfolded and forced to kneel in a crowded street. While a large crowd watched, Hamas gunmen executed the two men with gunshots to the back of the head.

The summary executions raised the possibility that Hamas would reassert its authority and intimidate any other group that challenged it.

A plan for the new Palestinian police

Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdel Ati said that his country is training about 5,000 new Palestinian policemen for Gaza. Preparations have been made in Egypt in recent weeks, although it is not clear when the new force will come to Gaza, and whether Hamas will accept this new authority.

The ceasefire also calls on Hamas to “disarm.” President Trump said Tuesday that “if they don’t lay down their weapons, we will take their weapons away, and it will happen quickly and perhaps violently.”

However, the Trump administration also said it would not send US troops to Gaza. The United States sends 200 soldiers to Israel. But the mission is to help plan, coordinate and monitor the ceasefire from a safe distance inside Israel, according to senior US officials who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the plans.

The truce agreement also calls for the formation of an international force to stabilize Gaza, although no country has yet committed to sending forces to the Strip. Any such mission would carry significant risks if forces were placed between Israel and Hamas.

The enormous challenge of reconstruction

Ten bulldozers have begun clearing rubble from Gaza’s main roads, a small step in a reconstruction effort that will be measured in years, if not decades.

Gaza City Mayor Yahya Al-Sarraj said that this part of the cleanup efforts is funded by Qatar, which has been a major donor to Gaza for years.

Trump says he expects wealthy Arab countries to provide reconstruction money, which will include Qatar as well as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

United Nations Forecasts cost The cost of reconstruction in the impoverished region is expected to reach $70 billion. It is estimated that 90% of buildings in Gaza have been damaged or destroyed.

Israel and Hamas have clashed repeatedly over the past quarter-century, and parts of Gaza have been rebuilt several times. The reconstruction process has been slowed by ongoing tensions.

Israel imposes tight restrictions on what enters Gaza and often limits or blocks supplies when it says it has information that Hamas is misusing such materials.

A leading example of this is concrete, an essential component of home construction. However, Hamas used massive amounts of imported concrete to build an extensive network of underground tunnels throughout Gaza. Israel insists this will not happen again.

The rebuilding process over the next six months will focus on several essentials: removing rubble, providing temporary housing, cash-for-work programmes, and revitalizing the banking system.

However, even these initial steps will require a functioning government, a sense of stability, and sufficient cooperation with Israel so that construction materials can flow into the region on a regular basis.

NPR’s Anas Baba contributed to this report from Gaza.

For more reports, analysis and different perspectives on the conflict, go to npr.org/mideastupdates.