21 years, $1.2 billion: Time, cost required to clear Gaza rubble as Hamas and Israel's 15-month-long war halted

The UN estimates Gaza's reconstruction post-conflict will cost billions and take decades.

The United Nations has estimated that the reconstruction of Gaza following the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian terrorist organisation Hamas will require billions of dollars.

The United Nations has projected that billions of dollars would be needed to rebuild Gaza after the war between Israel and the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas.(AFP/Omar AL-QATTAA)

Sunday marked the start of a truce between Israel and Hamas, ending a 15-month-long conflict that has enraged the Middle East and destroyed the Gaza Strip, reported news agency Reuters.

This is a summary of the devastation caused by the battle in Gaza, which began when Hamas terrorists, who at the time controlled the Palestinian enclave, attacked Israel on October 7, 2023.

The Hamas attack on Israel killed 1,200 people, according to Israeli tallies. Israel's retaliation has killed more than 46,000 people, according to Gaza's health ministry.

How long will it take to clear the rubble?

According to a UN damage assessment this month, it might take 21 years and cost up to $1.2 billion to remove the more than 50 million tonnes of rubble that remain after Israel's assault.

Some refugee camps that were hit during the war are known to have been constructed using asbestos, which is thought to be present in the wreckage. Human remains are probably also among the debris. Ten thousand victims are thought to be missing beneath the rubble, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

An official from the United Nations Development Programme stated on Sunday that the violence had caused Gaza's development to lag by 69 years.

Rebuilding Gaza's shattered homes will take at least until 2040, but could drag on for many decades, according to a U.N. report released last year.

Two-thirds of Gaza's pre-war structures - over 170,000 buildings - have been damaged or flattened, according to U.N. satellite data (UNOSAT) in December. That amounts to around 69% of the total structures in the Gaza Strip.

Within the count are a total of 245,123 housing units, according to an estimate from UNOSAT. Currently, over 1.8 million people are in need of emergency shelter in Gaza, the U.N. humanitarian office said.

Residents of Jabalia, a town in northern Gaza that is the site of the largest camp for refugees in the strip, posted images and videos showing entire districts destroyed by debris, as reported by the BBC.

Back in Jabalia's al-Faluja neighbourhood, Duaa al-Khalidi, a 28 year old mother of two said, "I survived with my two daughters, we came out from under the rubble of our house.

"Here, beneath the debris, the bodies of my husband, my mother-in-law, and my sister-in-law have remained buried since 9 October. I want nothing but their bodies so I can bury them with dignity."

Approximately 4,000 Palestinians were murdered in the largest and bloodiest Israeli military operation throughout the conflict, which took place in the Jabalia camp, which was formerly home to over 250,000 people, according to the health ministry operated by Hamas.

Hussein Awda, who recorded his return trip from Gaza City, was also heading back to Jabalia.

At the beginning of the war, the professional weightlifter, who has competed internationally for Palestine, lost ten family members. In addition, he uploaded a video showing the destruction of his three-story house and sports club.

"Here I lost the people closest to my heart - my brothers, my sons, my source of livelihood. The war killed everything beautiful inside us."

According to a UN-World Bank report, the projected damage to infrastructure as of the end of January 2024 was $18.5 billion, impacting residential structures, commerce, industry, and vital services including electricity, health, and education. A more current estimate for that number has not been supplied.

According to an update released this month by the U.N. humanitarian agency, at least 68% of the road network has been destroyed, and fewer than 25% of the pre-war water sources are still available.

Ahmed Abu Ayham, a native of Gaza City who has been taking refuge in Khan Younis with his family, described his hometown as "dreadful" to Reuters.

People were spotted shooting images on their mobile phones and waving the Palestinian flag in the city, which experts say has been the most severely damaged.

However, the 40-year-old stated that even if the truce would save lives, it was not time to celebrate.

Journalist Muhammad al-Jamal of the Palestinian daily Al-Ayyam commented on his personal loss in Rafah.

"The house was razed to the ground; everything was reduced to rubble," he said. "The chicken coop and the fig tree whose fruits we shared together are now a thing of the past."

What about food?

Violence has destroyed more than half of Gaza's agricultural land, which is essential for feeding the needy people of the war-torn region.

In the Palestinian enclave, where hunger is pervasive following 15 months of Israeli shelling, the data shows an increase in the damage of orchards, field crops, and vegetables.

Last year, the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organisation said that about half of the sheep and 15,000 cattle, or more than 95% of the total, had been killed or killed since the violence started.

What about schools and universities?

More than 200 government buildings, 136 colleges and institutions, 823 mosques, and three churches have all been destroyed as a result of the fighting. According to a report by the U.N. humanitarian agency, as of January, just 17 of 36 hospitals were partially operational due to the damage caused by the fighting.

The level of devastation along Gaza's eastern border has been brought to light by Amnesty International's Crisis Evidence Lab. More than 3,500 buildings, or more than 90% of the area's buildings, were either completely destroyed or seriously damaged as of May 2024.