This week, at the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that he believes Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates will finance the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip after the war. In response to a request of this sort by the United States, it was reported that the two countries have refused to send soldiers on their behalf to Gaza, but did agree to help financially in the reconstruction of the unprecedented destruction caused by the war. However, the funding depends on specific conditions, led by efforts to achieve a two-state solution and a comprehensive reform of the Palestinian Authority. It is far from certain whether these conditions can be met by Israel and the Palestinians.
The basic condition set by Riyadh and Abu Dhabi is the return of control of the Gaza Strip to the Palestinian Authority. This is contrary to the position of the Prime Minister, who strongly opposes this plan. Moreover, Saudi and Emirati officials made it clear that Israel must agree to negotiate with the PA on resolving the conflict through the establishment of a Palestinian state. In response to Netanyahu's statement that the funding would come from both countries, the UAE ambassador to the United Nations hastened to clarify that his country would only do so if it is presented with a "serious" roadmap with a clear timeframe and goal for the establishment of a Palestinian state. In order to demonstrate the seriousness of its intentions to invest in the residents of Gaza in the long term, the UAE set up three desalination plants on the Gaza Strip-Egypt border to alleviate the shortage of drinking water within the Strip.
Financial support from Saudi Arabia and the UAE for the reconstruction of Gaza the day after the war is important but not sufficient for Israel. The states must also play an active political role in supporting a Palestinian leadership that fills the vacuum left by Hamas, push aside Qatar and its negative influence, ease the security control that Israel will leave in the Strip, and give Arab legitimacy to the alternative government mechanism in Gaza. Saudi Arabia and the UAE may see this as an opportunity to increase their influence, particularly if they are reluctant to do so without a political horizon, when public opinion might perceive them as having assisted Israel’s occupation of the Strip, and while they fear their investment will be for naught in another war.
This week, at the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that he believes Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates will finance the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip after the war. In response to a request of this sort by the United States, it was reported that the two countries have refused to send soldiers on their behalf to Gaza, but did agree to help financially in the reconstruction of the unprecedented destruction caused by the war. However, the funding depends on specific conditions, led by efforts to achieve a two-state solution and a comprehensive reform of the Palestinian Authority. It is far from certain whether these conditions can be met by Israel and the Palestinians.
The basic condition set by Riyadh and Abu Dhabi is the return of control of the Gaza Strip to the Palestinian Authority. This is contrary to the position of the Prime Minister, who strongly opposes this plan. Moreover, Saudi and Emirati officials made it clear that Israel must agree to negotiate with the PA on resolving the conflict through the establishment of a Palestinian state. In response to Netanyahu's statement that the funding would come from both countries, the UAE ambassador to the United Nations hastened to clarify that his country would only do so if it is presented with a "serious" roadmap with a clear timeframe and goal for the establishment of a Palestinian state. In order to demonstrate the seriousness of its intentions to invest in the residents of Gaza in the long term, the UAE set up three desalination plants on the Gaza Strip-Egypt border to alleviate the shortage of drinking water within the Strip.
Financial support from Saudi Arabia and the UAE for the reconstruction of Gaza the day after the war is important but not sufficient for Israel. The states must also play an active political role in supporting a Palestinian leadership that fills the vacuum left by Hamas, push aside Qatar and its negative influence, ease the security control that Israel will leave in the Strip, and give Arab legitimacy to the alternative government mechanism in Gaza. Saudi Arabia and the UAE may see this as an opportunity to increase their influence, particularly if they are reluctant to do so without a political horizon, when public opinion might perceive them as having assisted Israel’s occupation of the Strip, and while they fear their investment will be for naught in another war.