Rebuilding Gaza to prewar conditions will cost at least $71 billion over five years, according to a new joint assessment by the World Bank, United Nations, and European Union. But six months after the October ceasefire, reconstruction has stalled and pledged international aid is barely materializing.

The report, the most detailed damage assessment since fighting ended, found $35.2 billion in physical destruction and $22.7 billion in economic losses. Housing alone accounts for over half the physical damage, with nearly 85 percent of the 371,888 affected housing units completely destroyed.

Yet progress on the ground is nearly frozen. The IDF controls more than half the enclave and has restricted entry of heavy equipment needed for reconstruction. Meanwhile, the US pledged $17 billion through its Board of Peace in February, but only a fraction has been transferred as of early May.

“The situation in Gaza has not changed since the ceasefire until now,” said Saif al-Din Odeh, a Gaza-based economist. “Most people are living in tents because their homes were destroyed.”

The funding shortfall looms as international attention shifts. Previous Gaza reconstruction pledges after earlier conflicts went largely undelivered, and Gulf donors who promised billions were heavily impacted by the recent US-Israel war against Iran.

The reconstruction plan prioritizes emergency assistance in the first 18 months — food, temporary housing, field hospitals — before moving to large-scale rebuilding of housing, healthcare, and education systems. But without security progress and reliable funding, even that timeline appears uncertain.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)