You Can't Build a Playground on Rubble: Why Trump's Gaza Dream will Fail

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Editorial

Donald Trump says he wants to “take over Gaza” and turn it into the “Riviera of the Middle East.” The image is flashy. The reality is not.

Gaza today is not a blank canvas waiting for resorts. It is a shattered landscape.

According to the UN, more than 35,000 Palestinians have been killed and over 75,000 injured in the latest round of fighting. Entire neighborhoods lie in ruins: 60–70% of housing units have been damaged or destroyed, leaving more than 1.7 million people displaced in a territory of just 25 miles in length.

Gaza’s only power plant is inoperative; 90% of the population lacks reliable access to electricity or clean water. More than half of hospitals and clinics are nonfunctional, either bombed or without supplies.

The World Bank estimates that rebuilding Gaza will cost well over $50 billion — and that is before addressing long-term economic recovery.

Against this backdrop, Trump’s plan — U.S. ownership, mass relocation of Palestinians, resorts rising over ruins — is neither moral nor possible. It sounds like colonialism with a coat of paint. Palestinians will not accept it.

Arab states will not support it. The world will not recognize it.

And yet, buried in the bluster is a truth: Gaza must be rebuilt. It cannot remain a graveyard of war and misery.

A feasible version of the vision would look very different. Palestinians would stay in Gaza, with guaranteed rights to return to rebuilt homes.

Reconstruction would be led by an international coalition — the UN, Arab states, Europe, and yes, the U.S. — but not “owned” by America.

The steps are obvious: clear the rubble and unexploded ordnance, restore power and water, build schools and hospitals, then create jobs through ports, trade, and industry. Done right, Gaza could become a place of hope rather than despair.

But here’s the hard part: politics. Israel demands security. Palestinians demand sovereignty. Donors demand oversight. None of them trust each other.

Even with billions in aid, even with blueprints and bulldozers, mistrust could sink the project before it starts.

So will Trump succeed? No — at least not with his “playground” fantasy. The Riviera pitch is a mirage. But Gaza still needs rebuilding, and the world cannot look away.

Reconstruction must serve Palestinians first. Without justice and dignity, no resort, port, or skyscraper will last.

Gaza does not need a playground. It needs peace, power, and a chance to live.