The reconstruction of Gaza will require a collective effort and a substantial wallet: according to the official estimate by the EU, UN, and World Bank, the bill for the Strip to recover from the devastation caused by the Israeli military offensive in response to the Hamas attacks of October 2023 amounts to 71.4 billion dollars (more than 60.6 billion euros) over the next decade. Even more difficult will be to recover human capabilities and dignities: the damage report estimates that human development has regressed 77 years due to setbacks caused by the conflict in terms of living conditions, livelihoods and income, food security, gender equality, and social inclusion.
Read more Scary binges in X
The final report Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment in Gaza (RDNA) prepared by the three multilateral institutions, which analyzes the damage, economic losses, and recovery and reconstruction needs in Gaza after more than 24 months of conflict, does not mince words: “The escalation of the conflict over the past two years has led to the collapse of systems that sustain people’s daily survival and dignity,” emphasizes the 63-page report.
It is a multi-sectoral collapse —lack of housing, food security, health, education, or income— that occurs “simultaneously,” so the problems “reinforce each other,” leading to a “vicious cycle of hunger, disease, loss of education and income, gender-based violence, and social fragmentation.”
“The report highlights the catastrophic impact on human development in Gaza, which is estimated to have regressed 77 years,” the EU stated in a communiqué, recalling that around 1.9 million people have been displaced, “often multiple times,” and more than 60% of the population has lost their homes. More than 50% of hospitals have also become inoperative, almost all schools are destroyed or damaged, and the economy has contracted by 84%. The greatest burden is borne by “women, children, people with disabilities, and those with pre-existing vulnerabilities.”
Achieving a physical recovery of the devastated Gaza Strip will also be far from easy: the report estimates recovery and reconstruction needs at at least 71.4 billion dollars. Of these, one third, 26.3 billion, will be needed in the first 18 months to “restore essential services, rebuild critical infrastructure, and support economic recovery.” Physical damage to infrastructure is estimated at 35.2 billion dollars, while economic and social losses amount to an additional 22.7 billion.
Fulfilling what was promised
The stark report comes amid renewed efforts to curb the actions of Benjamin Netanyahu’s government in Gaza, but also in the West Bank and southern Lebanon, using the EU-Israel Association Agreement as a pressure point, which will be analyzed by EU foreign ministers this Tuesday in Luxembourg. It has also coincided with a new attempt by Brussels to promote the two-state solution that the EU advocates as the only viable solution for the region.
Read more Roberto Paparcone, the architect who left his job to mold clay
“After years of war, we must be honest and admit that the option of the two-state solution has not made much progress, even though it remains the most viable path for a Middle East without war,” acknowledged the EU High Representative for Foreign Policy, Kaja Kallas, in an appearance alongside Palestinian Prime Minister Mohamed Mustafa and Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide, with whom she co-chaired a meeting of the ad hoc committee coordinating the delivery of international aid to Palestinians and the Palestinian Authority on Monday. Previously, a new meeting of the Global Alliance for the Implementation of the Two-State Solution had been held, where the head of European diplomacy had made it clear that both parties, Israel and the Palestinian Authority, must “fulfill” their commitments to move forward.
“For the two-state solution to have a chance, both parties must fulfill what was promised: Israel must stop the expansion of its settlements, settler crimes must be punished, and Israel must release the withheld tax revenues, which is money belonging to the Palestinians,” she summarized. But at the same time, the Palestinian Authority “must advance reforms in Gaza,” she added, while recalling that Hamas’s refusal to disarm “remains a major obstacle to peace.”
“We can and must do more to ensure respect for human rights and accountability, in order to protect the Palestinian people and firmly put the two-state solution back on the table,” emphasized the Estonian official. Because this solution, she stressed, “is the only way for both Palestinians and Israelis to live in security.”
Very productive meeting with @PalestinePMO discussing the full implementation of #UNSC Resolution 2803. We are both committed to the coordination needed to ensure that as decommissioning and handover to @NCAG happens in Gaza, #Palestinians can benefit from full reconstruction,…
— Nickolay E. MLADENOV (@nmladenov) April 20, 2026
“War will not produce peace, blockade will not provide security, occupation will not cause stability, forced displacements will not give legitimacy, and annexation will never allow coexistence. Only a just and political solution will work,” corroborated Mustafa, who met for the first time in Brussels with a senior representative of Donald Trump’s Peace Board, Nickolay Mladenov.
Read more The great dream of Latin American mining
