ID :
181413
Wed, 05/11/2011 - 11:02
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/181413
The shortlink copeid
Unity deal could jump-start Gaza reconstruction process
TEHRAN, May 11 (MNA) -- Zyab Salim, 55, lives in Bait Lahya in northern Gaza, waiting to finally return to his property, where his house, which was destroyed in the Israeli war of December 2008-January 2009, was located. He dreams of a new life in a new house, where he hopes to finally taste the joy of freedom and independence.
This is the hopeful story of many residents of Gaza, whose houses were among the 4,800 buildings completely destroyed in the 22-day war. However, despite the reconciliation deal between Fatah and Hamas, these people are still waiting for a response to their demands.
But Khan Younis resident Iyad Nasser, 34, is not so hopeful. He says, “Even if the national unity government is formed as quickly as possible, it takes at least six months to rebuild houses in Gaza, because reconstruction would not be the main priority for the new government.”
According to Hamas officials in the Gaza Strip, of the 4,800 houses completely destroyed in the 22-day war, only 1,500 have been reconstructed.
At the time of the war, Gaza was under a complete siege and Hosni Mubarak, who was the president of Egypt at the time, refused to open the Rafah border crossing even for a few minutes. And this situation continued from the end of the war in January 2009 until the recent developments in the Middle East and Egypt.
Meanwhile, thousands of people have been homeless for over two years and Hamas was not able to provide the Gaza Strip’s dilapidated construction industry with the necessary material.
The tunnels under Gaza’s border with Egypt, which were used by Hamas and many ordinary Palestinians to get around the Israeli blockade, were heavily bombed during the war and afterwards and thus most were put out of commission.
After the war, Israel asked the United Nations and relief groups to provide a detailed list of goods, equipment, and personnel that they wanted to bring into the Gaza Strip for reconstruction work.
Israel told the relief groups it would consider expanding the list of materials authorized to enter the Gaza Strip. Before the war, the entry of most cement, steel, and cash was blocked, and the blockade was intensified after the war.
The damage to public infrastructure and private facilities is estimated to be over $3 billion.
In March 2009, Western countries participating in the international donors’ conference that was held to provide funds for the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip pledged $5.2 billion for the project, but very little of the money was delivered.
Also, the prospects for political unity were not so bright at the time, and Palestinians had little confidence in their leaders, whom they accused of putting party politics ahead of the urgent need to rebuild Gaza.
International organizations willing to assist in the reconstruction process felt discouraged from contributing funds and manpower.
So it can be said that political disunity was the main obstacle in the way of the people who sought to begin a large-scale reconstruction process in Gaza.
Now that Fatah and Hamas have set aside their differences based on their moral responsibility, hopefully they will quickly address the needs of the people of Gaza.
This is the hopeful story of many residents of Gaza, whose houses were among the 4,800 buildings completely destroyed in the 22-day war. However, despite the reconciliation deal between Fatah and Hamas, these people are still waiting for a response to their demands.
But Khan Younis resident Iyad Nasser, 34, is not so hopeful. He says, “Even if the national unity government is formed as quickly as possible, it takes at least six months to rebuild houses in Gaza, because reconstruction would not be the main priority for the new government.”
According to Hamas officials in the Gaza Strip, of the 4,800 houses completely destroyed in the 22-day war, only 1,500 have been reconstructed.
At the time of the war, Gaza was under a complete siege and Hosni Mubarak, who was the president of Egypt at the time, refused to open the Rafah border crossing even for a few minutes. And this situation continued from the end of the war in January 2009 until the recent developments in the Middle East and Egypt.
Meanwhile, thousands of people have been homeless for over two years and Hamas was not able to provide the Gaza Strip’s dilapidated construction industry with the necessary material.
The tunnels under Gaza’s border with Egypt, which were used by Hamas and many ordinary Palestinians to get around the Israeli blockade, were heavily bombed during the war and afterwards and thus most were put out of commission.
After the war, Israel asked the United Nations and relief groups to provide a detailed list of goods, equipment, and personnel that they wanted to bring into the Gaza Strip for reconstruction work.
Israel told the relief groups it would consider expanding the list of materials authorized to enter the Gaza Strip. Before the war, the entry of most cement, steel, and cash was blocked, and the blockade was intensified after the war.
The damage to public infrastructure and private facilities is estimated to be over $3 billion.
In March 2009, Western countries participating in the international donors’ conference that was held to provide funds for the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip pledged $5.2 billion for the project, but very little of the money was delivered.
Also, the prospects for political unity were not so bright at the time, and Palestinians had little confidence in their leaders, whom they accused of putting party politics ahead of the urgent need to rebuild Gaza.
International organizations willing to assist in the reconstruction process felt discouraged from contributing funds and manpower.
So it can be said that political disunity was the main obstacle in the way of the people who sought to begin a large-scale reconstruction process in Gaza.
Now that Fatah and Hamas have set aside their differences based on their moral responsibility, hopefully they will quickly address the needs of the people of Gaza.
