The United Arab Emirates wants to taking a big bite of civilian control in the Gaza Strip. Israel is fully behind it—but where does that leave the technocrats?
The plan, as sketched, is straightforward: the Emirates—backed by billions in investment—would manage Gaza’s markets, buying goods in Israel and moving them into the Strip.
Aid distribution centers would be upgraded into logistics hubs, with goods then handed off to Gaza’s private sector. Security for the centers and convoys will be handled by Emirati forces and U.S. private security companies.
It’s a model that resembles the Gaza Humanitarian Fund, the organization that was hated by the international community for taking aid distribution out of Hamas’s grip. The goal is essentially the same: strip Hamas of its chokehold on the flow of goods—and the subsequent income that fuels their recruitment and recovery.
