The Wall Street Journal reported that the United States is promoting a plan called “Project Sunrise,” which aims to transform the Gaza Strip into an advanced technology hub. The plan, developed by Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, may include a US commitment to cover around 20% of certain reconstruction costs over ten years.
The newspaper explained that “the plan includes the establishment of luxury seaside resorts, ultra high speed trains, and smart networks enhanced by artificial intelligence”, adding that “the Trump administration is presenting Project Sunrise to foreign governments and investors, aiming to turn the ruins of Gaza into a futuristic coastal destination”.
It reported that “a team led by Kushner and Witkoff drafted a proposal to transform the devastated Gaza Strip into a modern, thriving city. The plan, consisting of 32 PowerPoint slides, includes images of coastal skyscrapers alongside charts and cost tables, and outlines steps to move Gaza’s residents from tents into luxury apartments and from poverty to prosperity.
It continued: “The presentation was described as sensitive but unclassified, and did not address details regarding which countries or companies would finance Gaza’s reconstruction. It also did not precisely specify where two million displaced Palestinians would live during the reconstruction period. US officials said that the United States presented the slides to potential donor countries, including wealthy Gulf states, Turkey, and Egypt.
The newspaper added: “Some US officials who reviewed the plan expressed serious doubts about its feasibility. They question whether Hamas would agree in the first place to disarm for the plan to be implemented, and even if that occurred, they doubt the United States’ ability to persuade wealthy countries to bear the costs of transforming a dangerous post-war environment into a technologically advanced city”.
Others believe it offers the most detailed and optimistic vision so far of what Gaza could look like if Hamas were to lay down its arms and close the chapter on decades of conflict.
Stephen Cook, a senior Middle East researcher at the Council on Foreign Relations, who recently travelled to Israel but did not review the draft, said: “They can prepare all the slides they want. No one in Israel believes they will move beyond the status quo, and everyone is satisfied with that”.
He continued: “Nothing will happen until Hamas gives up its weapons. Hamas will not give up its weapons, so nothing will happen”.
In response to a request for comment, a White House spokesperson said that President Donald Trump continues to monitor Gaza and the peace plan. The spokesperson added: “The Trump administration will continue to work hard with our partners to establish lasting peace and lay the foundations for a Gaza that enjoys peace and prosperity”.
According to the draft, the total cost of the project would reach 112.1 billion dollars over ten years, with the United States committing to a role as a “primary backer” by providing approximately 60 billion dollars in grants and debt guarantees across all proposed work streams during that period. This would enable Gaza to finance many projects independently in the later years of the plan and gradually repay its debts as conditions improve and local industry and the economy as a whole are supported.
Officials said that Kushner, Witkoff, senior White House aide Josh Greenbaum, and other US officials prepared the proposal over the past forty five days, adding that they received input from Israeli officials, private sector actors, and contractors. They noted that if the project were launched, they plan to update and review the figures approximately every two years as work progresses.
Supporters of the project insist that allowing Gaza to remain undeveloped while a worsening humanitarian crisis continues is a far worse alternative, adding that it is preferable to realise Trump’s vision of turning Gaza into the “Riviera of the Middle East”.
According to the newspaper, the obstacles facing development in the area pose enormous challenges. After thousands of Israeli air strikes on Gaza during the two-year Israel-Hamas war, officials estimate that around ten thousand bodies remain beneath 68 million tonnes of rubble. The land is contaminated and filled with unexploded ordnance, and Hamas fighters remain entrenched.
The proposal acknowledges on page two, in bold red text, that Gaza’s reconstruction depends on Hamas “disarming and dismantling all weapons and tunnels”.
Officials in the Trump administration said that if security conditions permit, they could put the plan into effect within two months. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Friday regarding the overall situation in the territory: “You will not be able to convince anyone to invest money in Gaza if they believe another war will break out within two or three years”.
Rubio added: “We have great confidence that we will secure donors for reconstruction efforts and for all forms of long term humanitarian support”.
Officials said that Kushner, Witkoff, and Greenbaum met with officials from Egypt, Turkey, and Qatar in Miami on Friday to discuss developments in Gaza.
The newspaper noted that the plan’s roadmap extends for more than twenty years. Efforts would begin with the removal of destroyed buildings, unexploded munitions, and Hamas tunnels, alongside the provision of temporary shelter, field hospitals, and mobile clinics for residents. Once clearance is completed, the construction of permanent housing, medical facilities, schools, and places of worship will begin. Roads would be paved, power lines connected, and crops planted. Only after that would the long-term objectives be realised, including the development of luxury seaside real estate and modern transport hubs.
The newspaper continued: “Reconstruction would take place in four phases, starting in the south in Rafah and Khan Younis before moving north to the ‘central camps’ and finally to Gaza City”.
It noted that one of the plan’s slides is titled “New Rafah”, portraying it as the centre of governance in Gaza and home to more than 500,000 residents. They would live in a city containing more than 100,000 housing units, 200 or more schools, more than 75 medical facilities, and 180 mosques and cultural centres.
The plan indicates that the total cost of the project would amount to 112.1 billion dollars, including public sector salaries, over ten years, with a large portion initially allocated to humanitarian needs. Approximately 60 billion dollars would be financed through grants, amounting to 41.9 billion dollars, and new debt of 15.2 billion dollars during that period, with the United States offering to guarantee 20% or more of the support. The World Bank would also play a financing role.
Costs are expected to decline gradually as Gaza’s revenues increase, as the plan enters its second decade. The proposal calls for investing 70% of Gaza’s coastline starting from the tenth year, estimating that this luxury coastline could generate more than 55 billion dollars in long-term investment returns.
