Zayed City taking shape in Gaza

Amidst rubble in the heart of war-battered Gaza, a neat city has started to take shape as Palestinians press ahead with a major charity housing project for their families ordered and financed by President His Highness Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan.

When completed, the Zayed City will be home to nearly 30,000 people most of whom have been made homeless by recurrent Israeli attacks on their areas.

The five-phase project near the devastated town of Beit Hanoun costs around $200 million and the first stage that was launched in 1999 is now mid-way to completion in defiance of continuing Israeli destruction and siege of most Palestinian areas.

A Palestinian official said the Zayed City is a vital housing project for their people and described it as "one of the pillars of the upcoming independent Palestinian state."

"When the first stage of this vital project is completed, it will provide 736 apartments to the Palestinian families... this will ease their suffering and allow them to live a decent life," said Marwan Abdul Hamid, Palestinian Minister of Housing.

"The UAE, under Sheikh Zayed's leadership, has always been generous with Palestine and the Palestinian people…this project in fact constitutes one of the pillars of our upcoming independent Palestinian state and its capital Jerusalem," he said in a statement to the Zayed Centre for Coordination and Follow-up.

The UAE has already signed a contract for the first stage, costing around $55 million, while the remaining phases of construction will be carried out in other parts of Gaza.

The project is part of a series of gestures undertaken by Sheikh Zayed to support the steadfastness of the Palestinian people against Israel's formidable military machine.

When Israeli invaders destroyed Jenin Camp in a large-scale offensive in the West Bank last year, Sheikh Zayed quickly announced he would rebuild the camp and assured its fleeing residents they would regain their homes.

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) is supervising the rebuilding of the camp after signing an agreement with the UAE to finance the $27-million project that involves the reconstruction of nearly 800 houses.

The UAE's Red Crescent Authority (RCA) is also active in the West Bank and Gaza, providing food, clothes and medicine to the Palestinians, whose economy and infrastructure have been badly damaged in Israel's ongoing aggressions.

More than Dh332 million (90 million) in direct assistance has been provided by RCA to the Palestinians since they launched their second intifada (uprising).

Apart from providing houses, the Zayed City project has also ensured jobs for more than 1,200 Palestinians who have been deprived of work in Israel after they were denied entry. More jobs are expected to be created when other stages of the project are launched, according to Walid Sayed, who is supervising the project.

"The first phase of the project involves the construction of 70 five-storey buildings, a 12-storey structure, two markets, a school and Sheikh Zayed Mosque that will accommodate more than 3,000 worshippers," he said. "Besides, the City will be supplied with all essential services, including roads, water, electricity, health and education."

He said the entire project, to be carried out in separate areas of Gaza, includes 3,570 apartments providing shelter to 25,000 to 30,000 people.

"We have completed more than 50 per cent of the first phase despite Israel's siege and its measures to bar entry of some materials and split Gaza into three parts… when it is completed, the Zayed City will tackle a serious housing shortage in Gaza, ease the plight of the Palestinian people and enable them to carry on with their struggle against the occupation."