The Trump administration and international partners are discussing proposals to construct a “Middle Eastern Riviera” on the ruins of Gaza, according to The Washington Post. One proposal would see the United States assume control and offer payments to Palestinians to leave voluntarily. A postwar plan circulating within the Trump government would transform the Strip into a U.S.-administered trust for at least a decade, during which it would be developed into a luxury tourist resort and a high-tech manufacturing and technology hub.
The plan, titled the “Gaza Reconstitution, Economic Acceleration and Transformation Trust” or “Great Trust,” includes calculations predicting an almost fourfold return on a $100 billion investment after 10 years, with continuous “self-generated” revenue streams. A 38-page prospectus reviewed by The Washington Post calls for the temporary transfer of all 2 million Gaza inhabitants through what it terms “voluntary” departures to another country or to reserved, protected zones within the enclave during reconstruction.
Palestinians who own land would be offered a digital token in exchange for the right to redevelop their property, which could be used to fund a new life elsewhere or eventually be redeemed for an apartment in one of six to eight new “AI-powered smart cities” to be built in Gaza. Each Palestinian choosing to leave would receive a $5,000 cash payment and subsidies to cover four years of rent and one year of food elsewhere. The plan estimates that each individual departure would save the trust $23,000 compared to the cost of providing temporary housing and “life support services” in safe zones for those who remain.
The proposal was developed by some of the same Israelis who created the U.S. and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which currently distributes food in the enclave. The financial planning was handled by a team then working for the Boston Consulting Group. The Washington Post notes it is unclear if the detailed Great Trust proposal is what former President Trump has in mind or discussed at a recent White House meeting attended by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, and the president’s son-in-law Jared Kushner. However, according to two people familiar with the planning, its main elements were specifically designed to realize the former president’s vision of a “Middle Eastern Riviera.”