Published 6 months ago • loading... • Updated 6 months ago
US pitches ‘Project Sunrise’ plan to turn Gaza into high-tech metropolis: WSJ
The $112 billion plan includes high-speed rail, luxury resorts, and AI systems, with the U.S. pledging $60 billion and aiming to monetize 70% of Gaza's coastline by year 10.
On Friday, U.S. officials pitched 'Project Sunrise', a 32-page PowerPoint proposing a Gaza rebuild with over $60 billion from Washington, seeking donor pledges.
A team led by Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump's senior adviser and son-in-law, and Steve Witkoff, U.S. Middle East envoy, developed the draft rapidly over 45 days with private-sector contractors and Israeli officials amid Gaza Strip's extensive war damage.
Project Sunrise outlines four stages over 20+ years, beginning in Rafah and Khan Younis, with New Rafah housing over 500,000 residents and coastline monetization plans targeting roughly 70 percent by year 10 for over $55 billion.
The proposal conditions reconstruction on Hamas demilitarization, but some U.S. officials warn donors are unlikely to invest if conflict risks persist.
Previous 'riviera' proposals prompted condemnation and questions about displaced residents' fate, as Gaza's population of 2.3 million and two million displaced remain unaddressed; far-right Israeli officials advocate expulsion while Egypt warns against Sinai displacement.
Israel's Defense Minister Katz speaks of new settlements in the north of the Gaza Strip - and thus opposes the US peace plan for the largely destroyed coastline.
Project Sunrise is the name of the new US plan for Gaza. The bombed-out strip of land is to be rebuilt into a glamorous, futuristic seaside destination if the White House has its way.