GAZA, (The Palestine Foundation Pakistan)
The Gaza Center for Human Rights (GCHR) expressed deep concern on Saturday over reports of a US-backed plan to construct residential complexes for Palestinians inside areas of Gaza controlled by the Israeli military. According to information published by the Wall Street Journal, the initiative would be managed through a US-led civil–military coordination cell involving the American military.
In a statement, the center warned that the reported plan reflects a joint US–Israeli approach to link reconstruction and basic human rights to political and security conditions, an approach it says violates international humanitarian law, which obligates an occupying power to guarantee the rights of civilians without coercion or political pressure.
The GCHR said the proposal outlines a framework that would subject Gaza’s population to a form of joint military administration aimed at reshaping demographic distribution inside the Strip. Such a scheme, it noted, threatens Palestinians’ right to adequate housing, freedom of movement, personal security, and land ownership.
The center cautioned that although the project appears to begin with engineering work, removing rubble and planning construction, it extends far beyond that, evolving into a form of social engineering designed to impose new realities on the ground without Palestinian participation or safeguards for affected communities.
The statement criticized what it described as an approach that treats civilians as “subjects of political experimentation,” bypassing the international obligation to ensure reconstruction is based on residents’ needs and rights, not external agendas.
The GCHR added that the involvement of military and engineering teams underscores the disregard shown for civilian protection and the restoration of basic rights destroyed during Israel’s military assault on Gaza.
It also pointed to broader international trends that undermine Palestinian rights, including the November 17 UN Security Council vote approving Resolution 2803, which the center says entrenches Israeli control over Palestinian land and undermines the Palestinian right to self-determination.
According to the center, the planned administrative structure, referred to as a “Peace Council and international force”, could use humanitarian aid as a tool of pressure and control. It warned of the involvement of entities accused of participating in or enabling acts of genocide, including the so-called Gaza Humanitarian Foundation and armed groups formed by the Israeli military.
The center urged international actors to uphold international humanitarian law, which prohibits imposing coercive arrangements on civilian populations, relocating them, or restricting their ability to determine their living conditions.
It called for guarantees that any reconstruction, urban planning, or engineering intervention must be based on the needs and inalienable rights of Gaza’s residents, with meaningful participation from local civil society and without political or security conditions.
The statement also warned against allowing foreign contractors or international bodies to dominate reconstruction efforts, saying such an approach marginalizes Palestinians completely and excludes them from shaping the rebuilding of their own communities.
Finally, the GCHR stressed that imposing any form of foreign administration or undefined “international mandate” over Gaza would deepen fragmentation, isolate the Strip, and further erode Palestinian national cohesion. It urged the international community to prevent the use of humanitarian suffering as a bargaining chip for reshaping political realities at the expense of Palestinian rights.
