Trump's Board of Peace Cuts Gaza Plan to Rafah Cabin Camp as $17 Billion Pledges Largely Fail
Updated
Updated · Middle East Eye · Jul 17
Trump's Board of Peace Cuts Gaza Plan to Rafah Cabin Camp as $17 Billion Pledges Largely Fail
3 articles · Updated · Middle East Eye · Jul 17
Summary
A pilot near Rafah has replaced the broader Gaza recovery plan, shrinking it to portable cabins under Palestinian administration, police and a small international security force.
No construction has started because funding is largely missing, ISF training will take months, and Israel is still negotiating the legal framework for the force's presence.
Only a scarce share of the $17 billion pledged for Trump's 20-point Gaza plan has materialized, pushing the Board of Peace to seek access to $11 billion in Palestinian tax revenue and frozen assets withheld by Israel.
October 27 Israeli elections are expected to delay any meaningful work, while Cairo talks on Hamas disarmament remain stuck as Israeli air strikes continue.
The Rafah scheme has also split Gaza's National Committee, which fears the project could divide aid access among Gaza's 2.1 million Palestinians.
With a new Gaza war looming, can diplomacy succeed before Israel’s October election alters the political landscape?
Is the Gaza pilot project a path to recovery or a blueprint for the territory's permanent division?
The Board of Peace Plan for Gaza: Critical Obstacles, Humanitarian Fallout, and Geopolitical Tensions Nine Months After the 2025 Ceasefire
Overview
As of July 2026, the Trump Board of Peace plan for Gaza stands at a critical crossroads, with its ambitious post-war reconstruction efforts remaining almost entirely on paper. Nine months after a U.S.-brokered ceasefire ended the Gaza War, the plan is languishing due to immediate obstacles, most notably Israel’s delay in deploying the international force needed to establish a new refugee camp in Rafah. This delay has stalled operational progress, leaving the Board’s vision for rebuilding Gaza and transitioning to a new administration unrealized, and highlighting the fragile and uncertain future of the peace initiative.