An international organization involved in assessing post-conflict reconstruction says it will take 20 years for Gaza’s battered and neglected housing stock to be rebuilt following the war between Hamas and Israel.
Shelter Cluster, co-chaired by the UN refugee agency and the Red Cross, says 17,000 Gaza housing units were destroyed or severely damaged during the war and 5,000 units still need work after damage sustained in previous military campaigns. In addition, it says, Gaza has a housing deficit of 75,000 units.
In a report circulated late Friday, Shelter Cluster says its 20-year assessment is based on the capacity of the main Israel-Gaza cargo crossing to handle 100 trucks of construction materials daily.
As part of the ceasefire, Israel agreed to immediately allow aid and reconstruction materials into Gaza, but as of Thursday morning, AFP reported trucks full of commercial goods and aids passing through the Kerem Shalom Crossing between Israel and Gaza, but no building materials.
Israel has consistently linked Gaza’s crucial reconstruction with its demilitarization, with Netanyahu saying the rebuilding would go ahead — “but only under our control.”
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AFP contributed to this report.
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