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GAZA’S GOVERNANCE MUST REMAIN IN PALESTINIAN HANDS  
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Said Zeedani
October 8, 2024
972 Magazine
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_ Amid plans for external interventions, it is vital to build a
consensus around an interim body to manage Gaza’s urgent needs and
pave the way for unity. _

Palestinian men work amid the rubble of houses destroyed during the
2014 war between Israel and Hamas, in the Eastern Gaza City Shujaiya
neighborhood, January 27, 2015, photo: Aaed Tayeh/Flash90

 

After a year of bloodshed
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unimaginable suffering in the Gaza Strip, the political future of the
Palestinian territory remains unclear. From the perspective of most
parties to the war — including members of the Israeli government and
army — the re-establishment of direct military rule
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Gaza is not a desirable or viable option. But the alternatives have
been just as problematic.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s pseudo-fascist
government still appears to be fixated on eliminating Hamas and
considering imposing some form of governance structure through a
network of tribal or village leagues — an idea that Israel tried
but failed
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the 1980s. Washington and some Arab states, meanwhile, have floated
various ideas to bring Arab or international peacekeeping forces into
Gaza to be responsible for security, humanitarian aid, and
reconstruction.

There is no shortage of proposals for external intervention in Gaza.
But it bears emphasizing that governance of the Strip after the war is
an internal Palestinian affair, and anyone who thinks otherwise is
deluding themselves. The people of Gaza will settle for nothing less
than Palestinian leaders known for their national commitment and moral
integrity.

This does not mean, however, that Gaza’s future should remain solely
in the hands of either Hamas or the Palestinian Authority (PA). By the
time the war ends, Hamas’ exclusive rule over Gaza will have either
ended or reached the verge of collapse. This outcome will partly be
due to the exhaustion of its military capabilities and the siege
imposed by the invading Israeli army, but for two additional reasons
as well.

First, for many Palestinians including in Gaza, Hamas bears its share
of responsibility
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the war it ignited and the devastating consequences that followed; and
second, Hamas’ continued rule is not in the best interests of
Gaza’s reconstruction — a process that requires astronomical sums
from Arab and international donors who are, to say the least, hostile
to Hamas and its regional allies. None of this negates the need for
both Hamas and Fatah to support whoever governs the Strip after the
war; indeed, an agreement between the two parties may be essential for
this.

Yet the end of Hamas’ rule also does not imply that the PA is
capable of governing Gaza after the war, nor that the PA will be
welcomed for this role. Hamas, and indeed many Palestinians, accuse
the PA of inaction and abandonment
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Israel accuses it of incitement and incompetence, while punishing it
for pursuing actions in international forums and courts. The United
States likewise accuses the PA of administrative failure and financial
corruption, and the Arab states are also unable to help the PA
overcome its deficiencies.

RESPONSIBILITIES OF AN INTERIM AUTHORITY

In light of the above, it is vital and urgent to build an internal
Palestinian national consensus around forming an interim governing
authority or national body to administer the Gaza Strip’s affairs.
This body should be composed of respected national figures who are
accepted, endorsed, and supported by Hamas and the PA (though without
the major leaders of either faction), as well as by key states
expected to finance Gaza’s reconstruction. The tasks and
responsibilities of such an interim authority can be summarized as
follows:

First, this body should be charged with providing security and
personal safety for Gaza residents, curbing lawlessness and disorder,
reopening and managing the Strip’s land crossings, and ensuring a
fair and effective distribution of humanitarian aid throughout the
territory. Second, it must oversee the reconstruction of Gaza’s
public infrastructure, which Israel has systematically destroyed over
the past year — from hospitals, schools, universities, courts, and
places of worship, to roads, water, electricity, communications, and
sanitation.

Third, this body must facilitate the return of displaced people to
what remains of their homes, and provide temporary alternative housing
for those whose homes have been completely destroyed. Fourth, it
should prepare to hold elections for municipalities and village
councils in order to rebuild local governance.

Fifth, the interim authority must coordinate between public
institutions (including elected local authorities) operating in Gaza
and the West Bank; this should also involve close cooperation with the
UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), which
remains the major aid organization in Gaza.

[Palestinians at the site of an Israeli airstrike at an United
Nations (UNRWA) school in the Nuseirat camp in the central Gaza Strip,
July 15, 2024. (Abed Rahim Khatib/Flash90)]
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Palestinians at the site of an Israeli airstrike at an United Nations
(UNRWA) school in the Nuseirat camp in the central Gaza Strip, July
15, 2024. (Abed Rahim Khatib/Flash90)
Palestinians at the site of an Israeli airstrike at an United Nations
(UNRWA) school in the Nuseirat camp in the central Gaza Strip, July
15, 2024. (Abed Rahim Khatib/Flash90)

Sixth, this body should continue to operate until a Palestinian
national unity government is formed, or until national elections are
held either for legislative and presidential elections under the PA,
or for the Palestinian National Council under the Palestine Liberation
Organization (PLO). This is a critical step to restore Palestinian
national legitimacy, and in turn, to achieve the complete political
reunification of Gaza and the West Bank.

For now, the most urgent priorities in Gaza are clear: to ensure the
withdrawal of Israeli forces from the occupied territory; to deliver
humanitarian aid; to prevent any forced population transfer out of the
Strip; and to begin the reconstruction of Gaza. These critical tasks
cannot wait for an agreement to form a Palestinian national unity
government, nor can they wait for the long-term project of rebuilding
the PLO on democratic foundations.

Reaching a consensus around an interim Palestinian body in Gaza is
thus arguably more feasible, and will not stand in the way of larger
political initiatives. Moreover, such an authority would be better
equipped to secure civil order in Gaza, and attract the necessary
material and political support from external actors. After a year of
devastation, this may be the only viable governance for Gaza after the
war — and one that is desperately needed.

_This article was first published in Arabic on __Palestine Forum_
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and translated to Hebrew on __Local Call_
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_Dr. Said Zeedani is a retired professor of philosophy at Al-Quds
University._

_+972 Magazine [[link removed]] is an independent,
online, nonprofit magazine run by a group of Palestinian and Israeli
journalists. Founded in 2010, our mission is to provide in-depth
reporting, analysis, and opinions from the ground in Israel-Palestine.
The name of the site is derived from the telephone country code that
can be used to dial throughout Israel-Palestine._

_Our core values are a commitment to equity, justice, and freedom of
information. We believe in accurate and fair journalism that
spotlights the people and communities working to oppose occupation and
apartheid, and that showcases perspectives often overlooked or
marginalized in mainstream narratives._

_Want +972’s most important stories sent directly to your inbox?
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* Gaza
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* Palestine
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* Hamas
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* Palestinian Liberation Organization
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* Israel
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