10/18/2025
Opinion: Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and the Reconstruction of Gaza
Frankly, I fully support the decision by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to freeze funding for Gaza’s reconstruction until Hamas is disarmed and full civilian control is restored. This is not an act of cruelty—it’s a practical step to break the endless cycle of destruction and rebuilding that has repeated for over two decades, while the Palestinian people continue to pay the price every single time.
Hamas is no longer a purely local movement. It has become part of a complex regional network in which Iran plays the role of financier, trainer, and weapons supplier. That makes any armed group claiming to be a “resistance” force a direct threat to genuine development, because decisions of war and peace end up serving foreign agendas rather than the welfare of Palestinians. Gaza, in that equation, becomes a proxy battleground instead of a national project.
The same applies to Hezbollah in Lebanon. What’s called “resistance” there has long ceased to serve national defense—it has become an Iranian proxy feeding perpetual conflict and exploiting people’s suffering to advance regional ambitions. When these groups act as mercenary extensions of outside powers, the outcome is always the same: devastation for ordinary people, especially Palestinians and Lebanese.
I am not against international aid for the people of Gaza—on the contrary, I call for it. But such aid must come with real security and administrative reforms: disarming all factions, separating civilian governance from military control, enforcing transparent accountability, and establishing long-term planning to ensure what is rebuilt today isn’t destroyed tomorrow by yet another reckless adventure. Without these conditions, reconstruction will remain nothing more than a bandage on an open wound.
— Ahmed Fathi
October 18, 2025
New York