US President Donald Trump will not have to pay the price for his promises about rebuilding Gaza the way Israelis will, Eyal Ofer, an expert on Hamas’s economy, told Maariv on Monday.
“The biggest problem, as with any real estate contract, is that Israelis are dazzled by the presentation, but do not read the fine print,” Ofer said.
According to him, “the Israeli media rushed to sell the public a new-old dream, that two million Gazans will leave the Strip. This idea appeals to many. The truth must be said, if it were practical, and without accusations against Israel of ethnic cleansing, many would welcome it.”
The people of Israel have long dreamed of how to disconnect from Gaza, he continued, noting that if it had been possible to saw off the Strip and let it float away, we would have done so.
“Reading the fine print of Trump’s plan shows that only 25% of Gazans would leave, and even they would be allowed to return once Trump’s evacuation and reconstruction is completed,” Ofer explained.
“And what about the other 75%? Where will they go? According to the presentation of the plan published by The Washington Post, they remain in Gaza in ‘secured areas’ where food will be distributed and health and education infrastructure set up for them, meaning temporary rehabilitation for the 10 years during which permanent buildings will be constructed for them, castles in the air.”
Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and the plan’s initiator, claimed Israel should establish camps in the Negev for Gazans.
“On one hand, Gazans would see this as realizing a ‘right of return’ to Israel, and on the other hand, it’s not hard to imagine how they would use this for propaganda, since the camps would certainly be surrounded by barbed wire, walls, and armed guards to prevent Gazans from spilling into the rest of Israel,” Ofer said.
“After ten years of evacuation and reconstruction, any Gazan family that wishes could return. Kushner explicitly states that Israel did not object to their return. Each Gazan family would receive an apartment in luxury towers valued by real estate estimates at half a million to one million dollars for large families.”
With such conditions, Ofer questioned, why would anyone want to leave?
“And at the end of construction, the plan speaks of transferring responsibility to a renewed Palestinian Authority. Sounds familiar.”
The situation on the ground
“And what will happen until the evacuation begins?” Ofer asked, noting that the IDF would be stuck with a million Gazans refusing to leave the city, meaning the military would be responsible for providing security for any demolition crews entering the area.
“Practically, this is a mission for tens of thousands of soldiers for many years, during which every week we will wake up to another ‘cleared for publication’ announcement as Hamas guerrilla operations and explosives wait in every alley.”
“There is no doubt this is a wonderful plan for real estate developers from Miami, but someone forgot what Gaza’s population really is, what the Palestinian ethos is, and how deeply Gazan society is religious and inseparable from Hamas’s ideology,” Ofer stated, explaining that those living in Gaza are bound by religious commands telling them to “cling to the land and continue jihad until the total destruction of Israel.”
“Anyone who thinks a real estate project, comfortable life, and economic welfare are the solution to Gaza’s hatred of Israel, I have a suitcase full of Qatari humanitarian dollars to sell him. The suitcase is used but in good condition. Model 2018. First hand, wrapped in a shiny cellophane conception.”