As global leaders in Doha pledged to eradicate poverty and “leave no one behind,” the reality for Palestinians in Gaza offered a stark contrast. Following a devastating two-year war, the enclave’s infrastructure is in ruins, its economy has collapsed, and its people are displaced. According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, more than 68,000 Palestinians have been killed, with an estimated 10,000 still buried under the rubble, as a fragile US-brokered truce struggles to hold.
Devastation on the Ground in Gaza
For residents like Yassir Shaheen, team lead for the charity Humanity First UK in Gaza, the experience has been harrowing. “Many nights, we lay awake, our lips dry, our hearts pounding in fear, feeling as though the sky itself was collapsing on us,” he told Al Jazeera. Access to basic necessities remains a challenge, with Shaheen noting that “even bread can feel out of reach.” While prices have fallen from their wartime peaks, they remain six to 10 times higher than normal.
The scale of destruction is immense. The UN estimates that 92 percent of all residential buildings have been damaged or destroyed, creating between 55 and 60 million tonnes of rubble. “Schools, clinics, shops, homes… everything that allowed life to function has been reduced to dust,” Shaheen said. Compounding the crisis, Gaza’s Government Media Office reported on Thursday that Israel has permitted only 4,453 aid trucks to enter since the ceasefire began on 10 October, a fraction of the daily amount stipulated in the agreement.
Global Pledges and Local Crisis
At the Second World Summit for Social Development in Qatar, member states renewed commitments to provide education, healthcare, and decent work for the world’s most vulnerable. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres described the resulting Doha Political Declaration as a “booster shot for development.” However, humanitarian leaders argue such declarations mean little for Gaza.
Rohan Talbot, director of advocacy at Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP), called the situation in the health sector “catastrophic,” with severe shortages of medical supplies and hundreds of healthcare workers killed or detained. The challenges in Gaza stand in contrast to regional efforts elsewhere, such as when Abu Dhabi launches Future Health to transform global care. “Development is impossible while Palestinians are denied the most basic rights to safety, movement, and dignity,” Talbot stated.
Aziz Hafiz, head of Humanity First UK, echoed this sentiment, saying “no declaration, however eloquent, can substitute for the fundamental right to freedom and security.” He argued that while peace is the ultimate goal, humanitarian work provides a crucial lifeline. “Every vocational programme, school rehabilitation, or psychosocial initiative becomes an act of resistance to despair,” he said.
Rebuilding Gaza: A Distant Prospect
After two years of conflict, Palestinians want to “rebuild their homes with their own hands, and to regain a piece of normal life again,” Shaheen explained. The conditions in displacement camps are dire, with most people living in flimsy tents offering no protection from the elements and no privacy.
The sheer volume of debris raises difficult questions about the future. “How long will it take just to remove the rubble? We hear that it could take years,” Shaheen said. “And if clearing the debris takes that long, then how long will it take before rebuilding can even begin?” He stressed that for Gazans, rebuilding is not just about “concrete and walls,” but about restoring their lives, safety, and dignity.
According to the Gaza Government Media Office, Israel has violated the ceasefire at least 80 times, killing more than 240 Palestinians since it began. Talbot of MAP insisted that global declarations will remain “hollow exercises” without political will to address the root causes of the suffering. He concluded that “justice and accountability” for atrocities, an end to the military occupation, and Palestinian self-determination are the only paths to sustainable peace and development.
