Gaza – The United Nations launches a large-scale rubble removal operation as a crucial first step to recovery

Today, Saturday, the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Tom Fletcher, visited one of the work sites on Al-Jalaa Street in central Gaza City, accompanied by the representative of the United Nations Development Program in Palestine, Jaco Sellers, to assess the progress made in removing the rubble – which is considered the first stage of a comprehensive plan to manage the rubble in the Gaza Strip.

Speaking to a UN News correspondent in Gaza, Mr. Sellers said that the program was taking the vital first step in clearing the rubble, “Which represents a major challenge in Gaza, where the estimated volume of debris ranges between 55 and 60 million tons.”

To give an idea of ​​the scale of the problem, he said: “If you built a 12-meter wall around Central Park and filled it with rubble, that’s roughly the amount of rubble that would have to be removed.” It is noteworthy that the area of ​​Central Park is about 3.41 square kilometers, which covers about 6% of the area of ​​Manhattan Island in New York City.

The UNDP representative explained to UN News that the first goal is to clean roads and facilitate access to hospitals, schools and other social buildings.

He added that the debris raised and crushed is recycled and used to pave roads and build bases for tents and temporary facilities, as part of broader efforts to recycle resources and reduce environmental impact.

There are dozens of heavy machines operated by the United Nations Development Program along Al-Jalaa Street, working around the clock to remove rubble and clean streets that have been closed for months.

The project is seen as a crucial first step in the long road towards Gaza’s reconstruction, as the international community faces enormous challenges in managing such huge quantities of rubble.

UNDP hopes that these efforts will pave the way to accelerate recovery projects, but officials warn that the process will require a lot of resources and time. In this context, Mr. Sellers said: “It is a very cumbersome process and will take many years to complete.”