EU‑led donor coalition earmarks €883 million for Gaza amid continuing bombardment — UnionPress

The Palestine Donor Group pledged almost €900 million for water, sanitation and waste management, but experts warn the money could be destroyed by ongoing Israeli attacks.

EU‑led donor coalition announced on Monday a commitment of €883.6 million to fund the early recovery of Gaza, targeting water, sanitation, waste removal and basic health services. The pledge comes as Israeli air strikes continue to hit the enclave almost daily, raising doubts about whether the funds will reach the people who need them most.

Since the ceasefire that followed the Trump‑administration's 2025 peace plan entered its first phase, conditions for Gaza's 2 million residents have barely improved, says Jonathan Veitch, UNICEF's Special Representative to the State of Palestine. "We're trucking clean water, we're giving them basic food, very basic healthcare, but nothing has been fixed in terms of improving the lives of Palestinians who have been suffering for so long and are still living in tents after three years," he told reporters.

Israeli forces have launched attacks on 246 of the 273 days counted up to 9 July, killing more than 1 092 people and wounding 3 507, according to United Nations data. A UN investigation released last month concluded that Israeli operations have deliberately targeted children, even after the ceasefire was signed.

Water scarcity remains acute. More than half of the water that reaches Gaza leaks before it reaches households, and roughly 82 % of families experience water insecurity. Health facilities operate with limited equipment, and shelter supplies are chronically short because Israel continues to block large shipments of aid.

Perhaps the most visible symptom of the crisis is the growing mountain of solid waste. Veitch, who recently returned from a field mission, described "enormous piles" of mixed debris in Gaza City and Deir al‑Balah, where medical waste lies alongside food scraps, broken vehicles and unexploded ordnance. The piles create breeding grounds for disease‑carrying rodents, a problem amplified by the recent European heatwave that pushed temperatures in Gaza above 40 °C.

The Palestine Donor Group, an international platform created in 2025 and chaired by the European Commission, says the money will be used to restore basic services. The European Commission's statement lists water and sanitation infrastructure, debris and solid‑waste management, and the revival of health, energy, agriculture and food systems as priority areas.

In practical terms, the funds are intended to repair leaking pipelines, build temporary water‑treatment units, clear hazardous waste and set up mobile health clinics. If fully deployed, the assistance could bring clean water to an additional 500 000 residents and reduce the incidence of water‑borne disease by a measurable margin.

However, the scale of the need dwarfs the pledged amount. EU estimates place the total cost of a full recovery at over USD 71 billion (about €62 billion). Even if the €883 million is spent efficiently, it would cover less than 1.5 % of that total.

European officials acknowledge that the volatile security situation threatens any reconstruction effort. An investigation by the EU found that projects worth €150 million, funded by the bloc, have already been destroyed by Israeli strikes. The actual figure is likely higher when bilateral initiatives are taken into account.

Since 2020, the EU has formally requested compensation from Israel more than a dozen times, but no settlement has been reached. A spokesperson for the European Commission, citing a recent visit by Commissioner for the Mediterranean Dubravka Šuica, said that Israel had agreed to move forward with two early‑recovery projects on water and sanitation. "We keep working with all international and regional partners on the next steps," the spokesperson added.

Veitch accepts the risk but argues that inaction would be a greater moral failure. "How do you know it won't be destroyed again? The answer is, you don't. But it's something that you have to do because it's the right thing to do for the people," he said.

Critics argue that humanitarian aid alone cannot address the underlying political drivers of the crisis. Tamam Abusalama, campaign strategist for the European Left Alliance, warned that separating the humanitarian emergency from the political context is a false dichotomy. "To ensure EU funds are not wasted and to sustainably improve the political, economic, and humanitarian situation in Palestine, the EU and its member states must use all available tools to end all forms of cooperation with Israel," she told UnionPress.

The European Left Alliance has launched a European Citizens' Initiative demanding the suspension of the EU‑Israel trade agreement, citing breaches of the pact's human‑rights clause. The petition, which closed on 15 July, gathered 1 228 012 signatures. After verification, the European Commission will have six months to respond, either justifying inaction or proposing measures.

Two days before the petition's deadline, the EU's Foreign Affairs Council failed to reach consensus on suspending trade with Israeli settlements in the West Bank. On the same day, Israel approved a US $2.3 billion construction programme for new settlements, planning to build 12 000 homes.

Abusalama stresses that Palestinians are not asking for more money but for the EU to enforce its legal obligations and hold Israel accountable for the destruction of civilian infrastructure. "Humanitarian assistance alone won't be enough," she said.

Last week, the Hamas administration that had governed Gaza was dissolved, paving the way for a technocratic Palestinian authority. Israel has so far blocked the handover, tightening its control over the territory and further delaying any reconstruction effort.

The EU's public discourse has largely focused on rebuilding Gaza while the party responsible for the devastation remains unpunished and continues to impede progress. Without a concerted political push, the PDG's financial commitments risk being reduced to a public‑relations exercise rather than a catalyst for lasting change.

Even if the €883 million is fully allocated, the success of the projects will depend on a fragile ceasefire holding, on Israel allowing aid convoys to operate unhindered, and on the EU maintaining pressure for accountability. The situation underscores a broader dilemma for European donors: how to balance immediate humanitarian relief with the need to address the political conditions that generate the crisis.

For workers and households across Europe, the story is a reminder of the human cost of conflict and the limits of charity when structural injustice persists. The EU's ability to mobilise funds quickly demonstrates solidarity, yet the repeated destruction of EU‑financed projects raises questions about the effectiveness of a model that separates aid from political leverage.

As the heatwave that has already strained European utilities now adds to Gaza's public‑health emergency, the urgency of delivering clean water, safe sanitation and proper waste disposal cannot be overstated. Whether the pledged €883 million will translate into tangible improvements on the ground remains to be seen, but the stakes for Gaza's civilian population, and for the credibility of European humanitarian policy, are unmistakably high.