EU launches $1 billion aid initiative for Gaza, urges disarmament of Hamas

The EU said Monday that European donors had put some $1 billion on the table to help initial recovery efforts in the war-torn Gaza Strip, devastated by the Israel-Hamas war.

“We will present the initial package today of almost 900 million euros, or 1 billion dollars,” Dubravka Suica, EU commissioner for the Mediterranean, said ahead of a donor meeting in Brussels.

“We now need the conditions on the ground that will allow the support to reach the people in Gaza,” she said.

The funds — which officials said include money already pledged to help Gaza — would be used to clear debris left from Israel’s military offensive in the Strip, and rebuild basic services such as water and sanitation.

“The governments of Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland, together with the European Commission and the European Investment Bank, are participating,” Brussels said.

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The World Bank is also taking part in the initiative, the statement noted, and Australia and Canada are also expected to join.

The EU said Suica had on a recent visit to Israel “reached agreement with the Israeli authorities on next steps for the implementation of two major projects in the areas of waste and water management in Gaza.”

The commissioner said donors “want to start with so-called early recovery, and it is very important to show that we are willing to do it.”

“But to do that, we need disarmament of Hamas in order to start proper recovery,” she said.

The EU is the biggest international donor to the Palestinians.

Separately, a senior UN official on Monday accused Hamas of interfering with humanitarian deliveries in Gaza and intimidating aid workers, warning that the terror group’s actions were making relief operations increasingly dangerous.

The humanitarian needs of Gaza remain overwhelming.

A US-brokered ceasefire in October 2025 stopped most heavy fighting in the territory – which began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas, the Strip’s de facto government, attacked Israel – though Israel has continued to strike some Hamas targets by air, and smaller-scale clashes have persisted on the ground.

The October truce divided the enclave into a larger, mostly depopulated area controlled by the military, and a smaller, densely populated area still controlled by Hamas.

The Israel-controlled segment has grown since the initial truce, while Hamas has resisted an international process calling for its disarmament and the transfer of power to a new administration.

The United Nations estimates reconstruction in the Strip will take years and require tens of billions of dollars, as construction materials and debris-clearing equipment remain in critical short supply.

Representatives from US President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace, meant to help prepare for post-war Gaza, attended the Brussels meeting.

Suica said that should help “ensure coordination and complementarity in our action” on efforts on rebuilding the territory.

The meeting — which included Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa — was also to evaluate reforms by the Palestinian Authority in light of further aid.