Gaza reconstruction plan scaled back to pilot project under Trump's Board of Peace: report

A reconstruction plan for war-torn Gaza, initiated under former US President Donald Trump's Board of Peace (BoP), has been drastically reduced from rebuilding the entire territory to a limited pilot project in the south, The Guardian reported. The BoP, established in January after being proposed in September 2025, was authorized by a UN Security Council resolution to create an international stabilization force for Gaza following a ceasefire. The scaled-back pilot project now intends to construct a temporary camp for a fraction of Gaza's population, complete with a Palestinian administration and police, alongside a small International Security Force (ISF) contingent. Progress on this project is not anticipated before the end of 2026. Recent steps toward initiation include the arrival of Moroccan and Kosovan officers in Israel to form the ISF cadre tasked with protecting the pilot camp. A logistics base is also under construction near Kerem Shalom for the force's equipment. However, construction of the camp itself, located near Rafah, has not yet begun, with satellite imagery showing disturbed earth but no new structures. Progress is further complicated by upcoming Israeli elections on October 27, which could lead to the downfall of Benjamin Netanyahu's government. An unnamed diplomat quoted in the report expressed concern that admitting failure would empower extremist factions within the Israeli government with more radical plans for Gaza, such as "wholesale population transfer and colonisation." The diplomat stressed the need to "keep something going, keep the ball in play" to prevent such outcomes. Adding to the tension, there are growing fears that Netanyahu might launch a full-scale offensive in Gaza before the October elections, especially as he faces potential electoral defeat. Israeli officials have cited Hamas's refusal to disarm as a reason for the inevitability of renewed conflict, though Hamas has stated willingness to disarm under specific conditions and has participated in negotiations regarding disarmament mechanisms.

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The aim is just to keep something going, keep the ball in play, because if you stop there are others with a more extreme agenda just waiting to jump in and take over, and they are talking about wholesale population transfer and colonisation.