Ministry of Public Works and Housing's Deputy Minister, Jawad Al-Agha, stated that approximately 2000 housing units in Gaza remain completely destroyed and unreconstructed, with a total cost of 99 million dollars. In addition, more than 90,000 partially damaged housing units have not received the necessary funds for repairs, amounting to a total of 106 million dollars.
During a press conference held by the ministry on Tuesday, Al-Agha confirmed that there are hundreds of damaged and destroyed cases that have not been reconstructed, some of which were affected before 2014 and subsequent escalations. He pointed out that funding interventions mostly occur after direct Israeli attacks, with a focus on humanitarian and relief aspects.
Al-Agha highlighted that the successive Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip have widened the funding gap and increased the number of affected families. In recent years, there has been a noticeable decline in reconstruction funding, and there seems to be no prospect for implementing reconstruction programs, leading to a continuation of deteriorating living conditions for the affected.
Regarding the reconstruction of towers and high-rise buildings, Al-Agha said, "This issue is still at a standstill, with no funding available, despite the required amount for reconstruction not exceeding 30 million dollars." He emphasized that the matter is attributed to political reasons by the occupation, which exerts clear pressure on donor entities to delay the reconstruction.
Al-Agha further explained that the housing sector, in general, is witnessing evident deterioration, with thousands of families living in inadequate housing units. The ministry conducted a social survey and engineering inspections for over 45,000 units, revealing that most of them urgently require improvements to become suitable for living.
He called upon the Arab and Islamic nations, international institutions, donor entities, and partners to urgently intervene to provide relief, shelter for the affected families, and rebuild what the Israeli occupation has destroyed.
Al-Agha also urged the Palestinian Authority to make genuine efforts with donor entities and donor countries to secure the necessary funding for the reconstruction and development of the Gaza Strip, emphasizing that enhancing Gaza's resilience is a significant honor and a sacred national duty.
