UAE to build compound for Palestinians in Israel-held south Gaza

Where Diplomacy Meets News

UAE to build compound for Palestinians in Israel-held south Gaza: maps

February 6, 2026

JERUSALEM,— The United Arab Emirates has drawn up plans to establish a temporary housing complex for displaced Palestinians in southern Gaza, located in areas under Israeli military control, according to a map seen by Reuters and officials familiar with the project.

The proposed site is near Rafah, a city bordering Egypt. Once home to approximately 250,000 people, Rafah has been heavily damaged and largely emptied following Israeli military operations.

The development is identified on planning documents as the “UAE Temporary Emirates Housing Complex.”

Rafah is set to be the starting point for reconstruction in Gaza under U.S. President Donald Trump’s peace plan for the densely populated coastal territory, which has endured two years of destructive conflict.

Donors have shown reluctance to fund reconstruction due to concerns that disagreements over Hamas disarmament could reignite fighting.

Diplomats said the Emirati project faces political hurdles, noting that most Palestinians are unlikely to move to Israeli-controlled zones while the majority remain in areas governed by Hamas.

The Trump peace plan envisions a U.S.-led multinational mission based in southern Israel to oversee Gaza’s rebuilding.

Emirati officials have reportedly shared details of the proposed housing and services in Rafah with U.S. authorities, four diplomats said.

Maps of the project indicate the housing would be located near the “yellow line” established in the October ceasefire, which marks the boundary between Israeli- and Hamas-controlled territories.

When asked for comment, a UAE official said the country continues to expand humanitarian support for Palestinians but did not directly confirm the housing plans.

According to one diplomat, the Israeli military has cleared a large stretch of land from the Mediterranean coast toward Rafah for temporary housing initiatives like the one proposed by the UAE.

Diplomats said the plan is similar to a U.S. effort first called “Alternative Safe Communities” and later “Planned Communities,” intended to provide housing in areas under Israeli authority.

A U.S. official said the UAE coordinates the initiative with Washington, the Board of Peace, and a U.S.-backed Palestinian committee assigned to manage Gaza. “We continue to be impressed with the UAE’s efforts to improve life for Gazans,” the official said.

U.S. officials hope the construction in Israeli-controlled areas may encourage Palestinians to leave Hamas zones, weakening the group’s civilian base.

Kenneth Katzman, a Middle East expert at The Soufan Center in the U.S., said such housing initiatives are intended to gradually “choke Hamas off,” but stressed that a small number of projects would have limited effect.

A significant scale, housing hundreds of thousands, would be needed to influence the balance of power.

The UAE, which established diplomatic ties with Israel in 2020 through a Trump-brokered deal, considers Hamas and similar groups a threat to regional stability.

Diplomats also questioned whether large numbers of Palestinians would move to the Israeli-controlled areas and warned the project could entrench Gaza’s division.

Unlike the U.S. approach, Emirati planners have chosen an undeveloped site for construction. Israeli forces hold roughly 53% of Gaza, including Rafah in the south, while Hamas controls the remainder.

Nearly all of Gaza’s two million residents live in crowded camps or in neighborhoods destroyed by conflict. Officials estimate that about 20,000 Palestinians currently reside in areas under Israeli military control.

(With files from Reuters)