LONDON, (PIC)
The UN estimates that it would take 15 years to remove 40 million tons of rubble in the Gaza Strip, if a fleet of 100 trucks was used, costing between $500 and $600 million.
The Guardian newspaper published a report on Monday in which it highlighted these conclusions that indicated the enormous challenge of rebuilding the Gaza Strip, following the Israeli genocidal war, which has so far lasted for months and led to massive destruction of homes and infrastructure.
According to the assessment by the UN Environment Program, 137,297 buildings in Gaza have been damaged so far. More than a quarter of these are classified as completely destroyed, about 10 percent were severely damaged, and a third were moderately damaged.
The UN assessment found that massive landfill sites will need to be established, ranging in size from 618 acres to 1,235 acres.
The assessment, published as part of a campaign to raise funds for early rehabilitation planning for Gaza, also found that the conflict could reduce levels of health, education, and wealth in the Strip to 1980 levels, erasing 44 years of development.
Last May, the UN estimated that Gaza rehabilitation could reach up to $40 billion, stressing that recovery from the massive and unprecedented destruction inflicted on the Strip due to the prolonged Israeli aggression may take 80 years.
Per Lodhamar, the UN official for mine action, explained that the war left an estimated 37 million tons of rubble, “that is, approximately 300 kilograms of debris per square meter.”
The UNDP construction assessment said that if the best-case scenario was achieved, assuming construction materials were delivered five times faster than in the previous Gaza crisis in 2021, destroyed homes could be rebuilt by 2040.
