President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace announced at its inaugural meeting in Washington that member countries had pledged $7 billion to rebuild the Gaza Strip. But in Gaza, where tens of thousands of Palestinians live in displacement camps or the rubble of their destroyed homes, the pledges stirred little hope. “They’re all liars,” said Faraj Abu Anze, among thousands in a sprawling tent camp on the Mediterranean coast. “We see nothing of that on the ground.”
The gap between the Board of Peace’s optimistic vision and the reality on the ground underscores a broader disconnect in international Gaza reconstruction efforts. Even as pledged funds fall far short of estimated needs and no timeline has been set for reconstruction to begin, Palestinians express exhaustion with promises that have produced no visible change in their circumstances.
The Board’s Vision vs. Ground Reality
Videos shown at Trump’s Board of Peace inaugural meeting displayed gleaming high-rises and new soccer pitches as the future of a rebuilt Gaza. The pledges sounded substantial: $7 billion in international reconstruction funding. Yet in Gaza itself, the reaction was one of resignation.
“Since the beginning of the war, we’ve been hearing about conferences and meetings. They say there’s a solution and peace, but it’s all a joke. They’re all liars,” said Faraj Abu Anze, who lives in a sprawling tent camp for the displaced on the Mediterranean coast. “We see nothing of that on the ground. There is no hope. Education and health care are gone. There is no life.”
But pledges made at a Washington table bear little resemblance to conditions on the ground, where tens of thousands of Palestinians remain homeless or living in displacement camps more than a year after the ceasefire began.
Pledges and Obstacles
The Board of Peace announced that member countries had pledged $7 billion for reconstruction. No timeline was given for when the rebuilding would actually begin. The United Nations, European Union, and World Bank have estimated the cost of reconstruction at $70 billion—up to ten times the amount pledged—with clearing the massive rubble alone potentially taking several years.
Israel has insisted that Gaza will not be rebuilt until Hamas has laid down its weapons, a condition that has become a significant sticking point in the ceasefire agreement.
Voices from the Camps
Ahmad Abu Selme, who has been displaced twice since the war began, echoed the sentiment of many in the camps. “There are meetings every day, but we see nothing,” he said. “There are tents everywhere and people are frustrated. We are tired.”
“I hope a real peace takes place and that we can go back to our homes,” he added. “I know there are no homes anymore, but we still want to return.”
The U.S. has signaled plans to begin reconstruction in Rafah, the city on Gaza’s border with Egypt that was largely destroyed and depopulated during the war. The city now sits in the half of Gaza under full Israeli control.
Ruwayda Dheir, among the tens of thousands displaced from Rafah, holds little confidence that pledged funds will reach those who need them. “The most important thing is that they put the money where it belongs and give it to the people,” she said. “They’ll say they spent it on infrastructure, but we won’t see it.”
The Conflict’s Toll and Current Status
The war began with Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack into Israel, in which Palestinian militants killed approximately 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took 251 hostage. More than 72,000 Palestinians have been killed in the war that followed, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. While the ceasefire deal ended major military operations and resulted in the release of all remaining hostages, major questions about Gaza’s political and humanitarian future remain unresolved.