Publication
Omar Shaban Ismail · Brookings Doha Center · 2015
A 2015 Brookings Doha Center commentary proposing a new framework for Gaza reconstruction after four failed post-war recovery cycles. Shaban argues for three parallel tracks — political engagement with Hamas, economic integration as a prerequisite, and governance separation of administrative from political functions — anchored in a collaborative multi-stakeholder reconstruction council.
A 2015 Brookings Doha Center commentary proposing a new framework for Gaza reconstruction after four failed post-war recovery cycles. Shaban argues for…
After four major wars — 2008-09, 2012, 2014, and the constant military pressures in between — Gaza's reconstruction has followed a depressingly consistent pattern: international donor conferences produce large pledges, disbursement is slow and conditioned on political outcomes, actual reconstruction is partial, and the next escalation begins before recovery is complete. The "Back to Gaza" approach this paper proposes breaks from this pattern by grounding reconstruction in a new political and governance framework.
The central argument is that Gaza cannot be reconstructed sustainably without addressing the underlying political conditions that have produced each successive crisis. These conditions are: the Israeli blockade, which prevents the import of materials needed for reconstruction; the Palestinian internal division between Hamas and Fatah, which prevents the creation of a unified governance framework; and the international community's political conditionality, which has made reconstruction funding contingent on governance arrangements that neither Hamas nor the PA can deliver.
A new approach requires three parallel tracks. The first is a political track that acknowledges Hamas's de facto governance of Gaza and creates a framework for graduated engagement — not recognition, but dialogue around humanitarian access, reconstruction, and eventual political normalization. The second is an economic track that treats Gaza's economic integration as a prerequisite for sustainability, not an outcome of political resolution. The third is a governance track that separates municipal and administrative functions from the political questions about Hamas's legitimacy.
The paper's specific proposal is a collaborative reconstruction council — a multi-stakeholder body that includes Palestinian Authority representation, international donors, UN agencies, and Gazan civil society, operating under transparent accountability mechanisms. This council would prioritize needs assessment, procurement, and implementation monitoring, separating the technical aspects of reconstruction from the political negotiations that have repeatedly stalled it.
Topic: Gaza Reconstruction — Local stakeholders · Transparency · Accountability — Text © Brookings Doha Center — archived here with attribution to the source. — Original source