Destruction in Gaza Unprecedented Since WWII, Says UN
The official estimates that the rebuilding of the Palestinian territory could span 80 years and cost as much as $40 billion.
Abdallah al-Dardari, UN Assistant Secretary-General and Director of the UN Development Program’s (UNDP) Regional Office for the Arab States, spoke at a press conference in Amman, Jordan.
He reported that Israeli aggression has wholly or partially destroyed 72 percent of all residential buildings in Gaza.
“The United Nations Development Programme’s initial estimates for the reconstruction of… the Gaza Strip surpass $30 billion and could reach up to $40 billion,” he said.
“The scale of the destruction is huge and unprecedented… This is a mission that the global community has not dealt with since World War II.”
Dardari also estimated that Israeli attacks have resulted in 37 million tons of rubble across Gaza. He warned that this “colossal figure” is growing daily and nearing 40 million tons.
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He added that the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip through a standard process could take decades.
The UNDP previously released an assessment indicating that Gaza would need “approximately 80 years to restore all the fully destroyed housing units” if the pace of reconstruction follows the trend of several previous Gaza conflicts.
“It is therefore important that we act quickly to re-house people in decent housing and restore their lives to normal – economically, socially, in terms of health and education,” he emphasized. “This is our top priority, and it must be achieved within the first three years following the cessation of hostilities.”
The UN official also highlighted that the Gaza genocide has erased 40 years of investments in the territory’s human development, stating, “We are almost back in the ’80s.”
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The Israeli regime launched its brutal assault on October 7 in response to a surprise operation by the Palestinian Hamas resistance group against the occupying entity, which was in retaliation for its intensified atrocities against the Palestinian people.
The regime has so far killed at least 34,596 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injured 77,816 others.
Source: Agencies
