The Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth reported today, Friday, that Israel has agreed to cover the costs of removing rubble from the Gaza Strip and will take responsibility for the massive engineering operation after a request from the United States. The newspaper explained that this issue is one of the main points of contention between the American administration and Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, as the cost of rubble removal in the Gaza Strip is estimated to be in the billions of shekels, possibly exceeding one billion dollars.
The newspaper noted that Israel has initially agreed to the request and will begin clearing an area in Rafah in the southern part of the strip to rebuild it. It highlighted that this is a prerequisite for starting reconstruction work in Gaza, according to the second phase of the ceasefire agreement sponsored by Washington, as the United States wants to start rebuilding the city of Rafah as a beginning.
It confirmed that the United States wants to make it a successful model for President Donald Trump’s vision of rehabilitating the sector, thereby attracting many residents from various areas, with other areas to be rebuilt in later stages. The war in the Gaza Strip broke out on October 7, 2023, when Hamas announced the start of the ‘Al-Aqsa Flood’ operation, and Israel responded by declaring a state of war and launching a wide-scale military campaign that included intensive bombing followed by ground operations inside the strip.
As military operations escalated and the humanitarian disaster in Gaza worsened, regional and international mediations, primarily led by Egypt and Qatar, with support from the United States, were activated to reach understandings that pave the way. These efforts resulted in a humanitarian truce agreement, the first phase of which came into effect on October 10, which included a temporary cessation of combat operations and the release of batches of detainees from both sides, in addition to the urgent introduction of humanitarian aid into the strip.
