When the guns fall silent, Western governments rush to rebuild. The European Union, the United States, and several Arab states are now pledging tens of billions of dollars to "reconstruct" Gaza. The impulse may be humane, but the outcome could be catastrophic. Unless funds are subjected to strict, transparent and enforceable controls, they will once again be used to fertilize the same terror infrastructure responsible for Gaza's destruction.
Lessons from the Rubble of Mosul
In Iraq, after ISIS's defeat, the UN and Western donors launched the Funding Facility for Stabilization (FFS), pouring more than $1.5 billion into bridges, hospitals, and power grids. Within two years, the UNDP's own auditors uncovered more than 100 investigations into fraud, bribery, and "ghost projects." If corruption could flourish under nominal Iraqi government control, imagine the diversion potential in Gaza — where much of the terror regime remains intact.
The U.S. Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction later called that effort "the largest single program of waste and fraud in U.S. history." It was a massive humanitarian mirage — and every sign suggests that Gaza is headed the same way.
Even earlier UN experiments, such as the Oil-for-Food scandal, showed how -- when oversight is weak and politics trumps accountability -- "humanitarian" programs become self-enriching rackets.
Gaza's Aid Economy: A System, Not a Mistake
For decades, Hamas has monetized misery. Every truck entering Gaza pays a tax. Hamas terrorists, in exchange for protection payments, "escort" aid convoys. Cement, steel, and cables intended for housing projects disappear into underground tunnels. For years, Hamas forces have been filmed confiscating relief shipments directly from UN trucks and warehouses. It is not chaos; it is a business model.
Washington and Brussels now acknowledge that terror-linked NGOs exploited the aid system for years. The U.S. Treasury and the European Council have both sanctioned so-called "charities" that channeled funds to Hamas and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). These are not isolated abuses — they form a structural pattern in which humanitarian efforts in fact bankroll jihad.
Independent research has long documented how Hamas launders Western aid through charitable societies and "cultural organizations" in Europe and the U.S. Rebuilding Gaza without dismantling this architecture is not reconstruction — it is re-armament.
The UNRWA Problem — and the USAID Illusion
Any talk of rebuilding Gaza collides with UNRWA, the UN agency that, since 1949, has operated in Gaza. After Hamas's October 7, 2023 invasion of Israel, investigations confirmed that many UNRWA employees participated in or facilitated the Hamas attacks, leading more than 20 donor countries — including the U.S., Canada, and Germany — to suspend funding. Some countries, however, under political pressure, resumed payments months later, even as fresh evidence emerged of UNRWA staff ties to Hamas's military wing. Re-empowering an agency so compromised would be an act of willful blindness.
Meanwhile, U.S. oversight failures run even deeper. The Department of Justice's Office of the Inspector General and multiple government investigations revealed that USAID repeatedly funded organizations that are fronts for terrorism or ideological activism — including entities connected to Hamas and radical NGOs pushing the "woke" agenda abroad.
According to watchdog analyses, more than $160 million in U.S. taxpayer funds reached groups "aligned with designated terrorists or their supporters." As former officials in the Trump administration warned, USAID was financing both jihad and leftist ideological programs under the banner of "civil society." The Biden administration chose to ignore those red flags. Once again, the absence of proof is not proof of innocence.
Dual-Use Materials: The Invisible Arsenal
In Gaza, there is no clear line between civilian and military infrastructure. Cement, steel, rebar, fertilizer and fuel can become tunnels, bunkers, rockets and launchpads. The very materials that donors label "humanitarian" are the building blocks of the next war. During previous ceasefires, hundreds of thousands of tons of imported goods vanished underground. Without airtight tracking, every truckload becomes potential weaponry.
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has long warned that, unless donors enforce real-time tracing and full transparency, NGOs are particularly vulnerable to terrorist infiltration. Any reconstruction effort that ignores these protocols is not humanitarian — it is reckless.
How to Rebuild Without Re-arming Hamas
- Disarmament first. No aid without the verified dismantling of Hamas's arsenals and tunnel system.
- Exclude compromised intermediaries. UNRWA and Hamas-controlled bureaucracies must be bypassed until full independent audits are completed.
- Enforce FATF compliance. Each grantee must disclose beneficial ownership, undergo sanctions screening, and accept external audits.
- Escrow and milestone payments. Disburse funds only after independent verification of completed, functional projects.
- Track dual-use goods. Use GPS, digital ledgers, and satellite imagery to follow cement, steel, fertilizer and fuel from entry point to destination project. Any loss or disappearance halts the next delivery.
- Ban cash payments to local militias. "Transit fees" and "security escorts" are extortion, not logistics. No direct payments should be made to Gaza's de facto authorities.
- Publish every contract. Public transparency deters graft. Iraq proved that secrecy breeds collusion; Gaza must be rebuilt in daylight.
From Naivety to Accountability
Reconstructing buildings is not the same as reconstructing what people might be planning. Pouring concrete over corruption will not create peace. The West has already watched Iraq and Afghanistan burn billions in the name of "nation-building." Gaza must not become the third chapter of that book.
If donors truly care about Gaza's civilians, money must move at the speed of verification — not politics. Anything less ensures that Western taxpayers will end up financing the next jihad, once again, under the comforting banner of "humanitarian aid."
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has made it clear that his position will not waver: no reconstruction of Gaza can begin until Hamas and all terrorist factions have been completely disarmed — under Israel's direct security supervision. This principle, rooted in hard experience rather than in well-intended diplomacy, stands in open contrast with the U.S. administration, which continues to push for a "political process" aimed at reviving a desired "peace framework" partially disconnected from the region's realities. Washington may view reconstruction as a path to normalization, but for Israel — the country whose citizens were massacred and whose borders remain under threat — security comes before expediency, and survival before consent.
Pierre Rehov, who holds a law degree from Paris-Assas, is a French reporter, novelist and documentary filmmaker. He is the author of six novels, including "Beyond Red Lines", " The Third Testament" and "Red Eden", translated from French. His latest essay on the aftermath of the October 7 massacre " 7 octobre - La riposte " became a bestseller in France.As a filmmaker, he has produced and directed 17 documentaries, many photographed at high risk in Middle Eastern war zones, and focusing on terrorism, media bias, and the persecution of Christians. His latest documentary, "Pogrom(s)" highlights the context of ancient Jew hatred within Muslim civilization as the main force behind the October 7 massacre.
