The United States and Israel have rejected a Gaza Strip reconstruction plan that sees the devastated enclave being fully rebuilt without displacing Palestinians, as envisioned under President Donald Trump’s proposal to transform the territory into the "Riviera of the Middle East."
Under the $53 billion reconstruction plan proposed by Egypt at an emergency summit in Cairo on Tuesday, Gaza, which has been largely destroyed in Israel's nearly year-and-a-half military offensive in the enclave, would be rebuilt over the span of under six years.
Artificial intelligence-labelled images, released as part of a version of the plan agreed at a summit that included representatives from across the 22-member Arab League, show modern housing developments and busy city streets, with the document outlining plans for tourist destinations, including resorts.
The proposal, which also includes plans for a commercial harbor and an airport, suggests it be funded by a variety of international sources, including the United Nations and international financial organizations, as well as foreign and private sector investments.
Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi said the proposal would enable the reconstruction of Gaza while ensuring Palestinians are able to "stay on their land without displacement."
The White House swiftly dismissed the plan, with National Security Council spokesperson Brian Hughes saying late Tuesday that the proposal did not "address the reality that Gaza is current uninhabitable." He said Trump stood by his "vision to rebuild Gaza free from Hamas," according to Reuters.
According to local officials, more than 48,000 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip as a result of Israeli shelling and bombing. Most of the population has also been displaced and more than half of the infrastructure destroyed, including hospitals and schools, according to estimate from the United Nations.
Trump's proposal for the U.S. to "take over" the Gaza Strip and turn it into the "Riviera of the Middle East" sparked outrage across the region and around the world last month, with some analysts warning that his plan to see Palestinians at least temporarily and possibly permanently displaced was tantamount to ethnic cleansing.
The Israeli Foreign Affairs Ministry echoed Trump's proposal Tuesday, saying it provided an "opportunity for the Gazans to have free choice based on their free will."
"This should be encouraged," it added.
While Israeli officials have repeatedly suggested Trump's plan would give Palestinians in Gaza the ability to leave the enclave freely — something they have not been able to do under Israel and Egypt's nearly two-decade-long blockade on the territory — it has not expanded on whether they would just as easily be able to regain access to the territory.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry also condemned the Egyptian proposal's plan for a committee of independent Palestinian technocrats to govern Gaza in preparation for the eventual return of the Palestinian Authority, accusing the Fatah-controlled government body of "corruption" and "support for terrorism."
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas commended the reconstruction plan in a statement, also thanking Trump for his efforts surrounding the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
Hamas, which has run the enclave for almost two decades and is a bitter rival of the Palestinian Authority, welcomed the proposal embraced by Arab nations in a statement Tuesday.
In Gaza, Palestinians balanced hope with doubt that the plan agreed by Arab nations would be enacted.
"We want this suffering to end," Usen Abdul Jawad told NBC News' crew on the ground in Khan Younis in southern Gaza. "We want the rebuilding of Gaza again.
Ebrahim Al Khalili, 27, warned that the humanitarian crisis in the enclave, where the Muslim majority was marking the month of Ramadan, was becoming "much more dire" after Israel halted the flow of aid and goods. Israel also warned of "further consequences" after Hamas refused to accept its proposal to extend the first phase of the ceasefire deal.
Israel launched its offensive following the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks, in which some 1,200 people were killed and around 250 others taken hostage, per Israeli tallies, marking a major escalation in a decadeslong conflict.
The first phase of the ceasefire agreed between Israel and Hamas in January expired Saturday, with negotiations for the second of three phases stalled for weeks.
"Palestinians in Gaza have suffered beyond measures, and the risk of even greater devastation looms," United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres warned Tuesday.
