Kochi: The war ravaged Gaza is in for a major makeover as the Chief architect US has unveiled plans to rebuild the devastated Palestinian territory from scratch, BBC reported.
Skyscrapers, housing estates, agricultural and industrial areas will pop up for the 2.1 million population.
The slides of the proposed makeover were presented during a signing ceremony at the World Economic Forum in Davos for President Donald Trump’s new Board of Peace tasked with ending the Israel-Hamas war and overseeing reconstruction.
Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, who helped broker the ceasefire that took effect in October, spoke about the herculean task to clear the debris left behind by the war.
The “Master Plan” has a zone reserved for “coastal tourism”, having 180 tower-blocks as well as a number of zones for “residential areas”, “industrial complex, data centres, advanced manufacturing” and “parks, agriculture and sports facilities”.
A new seaport and airport would be built near the Egyptian border, and there “trilateral crossing” where the Egyptian and Israeli borders converge.
A zone reserved for “coastal tourism” with 180 tower-blocks, zones for “residential areas”, “industrial complex, data centres, advanced manufacturing” and “parks, agriculture and sports facilities” have been envisaged.
A new seaport and airport have been planned near the Egyptian border.
Kushner said he believed to complete the construction of “New Rafah” in two to three years.
Last February, Trump suggested that Gaza’s Palestinians could be permanently relocated to neighbouring countries, with the US taking over the territory to transform it into “the Riviera of the Middle East”.
Earlier Hamas refused to give up its weapons without the creation of an independent Palestinian state. It later budged when Trump warned the group of catastrophic repercussions.
The ceasefire has remained fragile, with at least 477 Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes over the past three months, according to Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry.
Humanitarian conditions also still dire, with almost 1 million people lacking adequate shelter and 1.6 million facing high levels of acute food insecurity, according to the UN.
President Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority (PA) sought a full implementation of the peace plan, including the withdrawal of Israeli forces, and a central role for the PA in administering Gaza.
“The war was triggered by the Hamas-led attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, killing 1,200 people and 251 others being taken hostage.
Israel responded to the attack by launching a military campaign in Gaza, during which more than 71,560 people have been killed, according to the territory’s health ministry.
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Gaza to see major makeover
