By SCM Staff Writer I Tuesday, Nov.04, 2025
CAIRO — The spokesperson for the Egyptian Foreign Ministry, Tamim Khallaf, delivered a stark assessment of the destruction in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, estimating that the financial requirements for a complete reconstruction would reach a staggering $70 billion. Mr. Khallaf described the level of damage as “total obliteration” and “beyond comprehension,” arguing that the scale of the crisis demands an international strategy far exceeding conventional emergency humanitarian relief.
Speaking from Cairo, the diplomat underscored the unprecedented destruction across the territory’s housing, infrastructure, and economic base, stating that the immense $70 billion figure reflected the need to move past simple repairs and toward a fundamental economic and urban renewal.
“Aid alone won’t be enough,” Mr. Khallaf warned, cautioning the international community that traditional fundraising and relief operations would prove insufficient to address the deep structural damage inflicted on the enclave.
His comments suggest that the global effort cannot simply sustain the population, but must instead facilitate a radical restructuring of the territory’s physical and economic landscape.
The spokesperson emphasized that the path forward requires a “complete restart from zero.”
This terminology indicates that much of the existing infrastructure—from water and sanitation networks to electrical grids and public buildings—is functionally defunct and requires ground-up replacement rather than restoration.
The estimate places the Gaza reconstruction effort among the largest and most expensive humanitarian and infrastructural challenges of the last century, requiring coordinated action from regional powers, international development banks, and donor nations.
The Egyptian statement is expected to intensify diplomatic pressure on international bodies to develop a comprehensive, long-term funding mechanism for the enclave.
