Palestinians in Gaza are deeply divided over plans for the Board of Peace to enter the territory, with some seeing the initiative as their first chance to escape dire living conditions while others fear it will entrench Israel's control and permanently fragment the enclave.
The board, led by US President Donald Trump, will oversee a project to reconstruct parts of Gaza and implement a technocratic administration.
Initially, troops from several countries will be sent to areas of Gaza to monitor the fragile ceasefire. Then a “humanitarian zone” will be implemented offering temporary housing and basic services. The project is set to begin in the southern city of Rafah in the coming weeks.
Wissam Afifa, a Palestinian political writer and analyst, described the plan as an “institutionalisation of Gaza's fragmentation”, separating the territory into zones.
The plan “does not grant the peace council authority over the entire Gaza Strip”, he told The National. “Its activities would be confined to what Israel describes as the humanitarian city in Rafah.”
The plan was signed before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Washington, where he and Mr Trump discussed Iran and regional developments, following a period of more volatile relations between the allies.
The implementation of the plan seeks to “demonstrate that Mr Netanyahu has delivered a political achievement for the peace council established by Mr Trump”, Mr Afifa said.
The immediate impact on the ground will be “political, rather than humanitarian”. It aims to “strengthen Mr Netanyahu's position with the US administration rather than producing immediate changes on the ground”, he said.
The flagging peace plan for Gaza took a step forward last weekend as Israel granted permission for peacekeeping troops to operate in areas outside its control. Nickolay Mladenov, the leading envoy for the Board of Peace, welcomed the move to allow the International Stabilisation Force in the territory.
The force, consisting of troops from several countries, including Morocco and Indonesia, would be instructed to secure Gaza's borders and train local police. Under Mr Trump's peace plan, Israel should withdraw its forces as the peacekeepers establish control.
Inside Gaza, announcements by foreign forces are difficult to trust.
“It is neither positive nor negative, until we actually see results,” Iyad Jadallah, 29, told The National. “We've grown tired of promises and rhetoric.”
Mr Jadallah lives in Al Zahra, north of Deir Al Balah, in a displacement camp. He said his life was “unbearable” and he needed “someone to restore hope, allow us to dream about a future for our children again”.
Tired of tents and displacement
The implementation of the plan is received very differently across Gaza.
Some people, such as Adham Abu Hweishil, who is 33 and originally from Jabalia refugee camp, support the implementation of the plan, but are afraid it will lead to forced displacement to Rafah.
“If humanitarian cities are established, they should be built in people's original areas so families can receive services while remaining close to their homes,” he said.
He is displaced in Deir Al Balah in central Gaza and says he would refuse to relocate to the south. He wants to return to the north of the Strip.
“We are tired of tents and displacement. Every family should be able to return home,” he said.
Others, such as Elias Al Najjar, see the proposal differently. The 38-year-old from eastern Khan Younis believes improved living conditions outweigh the location.
“If the humanitarian city is established under international supervision, I will go immediately with my wife and children,” he told The National.
Displaced multiple times, like more than half of Gaza's population, he cannot stand his current living conditions.
“In winter we freeze and our tents flood. In summer we live with unbearable heat, insects and rats. We miss everything we had before the war.”
