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Donor pledges not enough to rehabilitate Gaza

The Palestinian Authority needs at least $15 billion to properly restore Gaza’s economy, while donors have only pledged $5.4 billion for interim reconstruction.
A Palestinian flag and a Hamas flag (R) flutter atop the wreckage of a house, which witnesses said was destroyed during the seven-week Israeli offensive, in the east of Gaza City September 3, 2014. Fifty days of war in one of the most densely populated parts of the world have left swathes of Gaza in ruins. With the economy reeling under an Israeli-Egyptian blockade, the enclave now faces an almost impossible task of rebuilding. Picture taken September 3, 2014.  REUTERS/Suhaib Salem (GAZA - Tags: CIVIL UNRES

The Gaza donor conference in Cairo on Oct.12 achieved pledges totaling $5.4 billion, half of which were allocated for the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip. Thus, Gazans are awaiting the start of the reconstruction, which they hope will put an end to their suffering.

The Gaza Strip has been subject to an Israeli blockade since 2007, with a noticeable easing since mid-2010. During the blockade it has seen three wars, with the latest one lasting 51 days and being the most severe in terms of the extent of the destruction it caused. Gaza's citizens expect the donors conference to allocate sufficient funds to address the destruction, and to lift the political and economic siege.

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