Following the toppling of the Hamas regime, an alternative government must be installed as the first order of business. Since a local leadership is not going to materialize from thin air, Israel must set up a provisional civil administration in Gaza. Establishment of such an administration in the Gaza Strip at the end of the war is the State of Israel’s legal and ethical imperative. Without it, Gaza will descend into anarchy and we will all pay the price.
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Palestinians climb onto trucks to grab aid that was delivered into Gaza through a U.S.-built pier
(Photo: Ramadan Abed / Reuters)
We must be ready for this process to take years – history tells us so
From the moment Germany surrendered in 1945 until 1949, Germany was under a civil administration imposed by the Allies. Japan, which surrendered shortly after Germany, also was governed by a United States civil administration which lasted for six years. Such a rule could last forever but, from the civilian perspective, the goal is to gradually install a local government. In the case of Gaza, this will also take years.
The first order of the day for a civil administration will be to provide basic humanitarian solutions for the people of Gaza. These will be delivered with assistance from local actors and international organizations. Such organizations cannot be of the contrarian type like UNRWA. A provisional civil administration in Gaza will allow the local population to disengage from Hamas. In addition, the State of Israel will be able to continue to use resources at its disposal as leverage that will create a new reality in the Strip. There are today hundreds of thousands of people who would like to emigrate from Gaza but remain unable to do so. Since Israel would also prefer as few as possible inhabitants in the Strip, there is a clear convergence of interests here. Under the provisional civil administration following the war, the State of Israel will be able to assist all those interested in emigrating from the Strip.
However, one counter-claim being made is that such an administration will drain considerable funds from the State budget. One need not look far to see the flimsiness of this claim. When looking at the current state of the West Bank, one can see that funds from the local population and international aid payments cover all expenses. This is also going to be the case in the Gaza Strip. Another claim is that a civil administration would violate the rights of Palestinians living in the Strip, a fallacious assumption. Before a civil administration was set up in the West Bank, the region did not have a single university. Now every city in the region has universities, hospitals and advanced infrastructures. The Israeli administration in the West Bank has contributed much more than the corrupt Palestinian Authority ever has to the local population, and certainly more than what entities like Hamas and Islamic Jihad will.
The challenge of educational reform
Education in Gaza has been controlled by UNRWA, which blatantly incites and educates its public to annihilate Israel. This being the case, education there has got to undergo fundamental changes. One must understand that, if the State of Israel does not assume responsibility for education in the Strip, it will perpetuate the same cesspool that has produced such a catastrophic crop of terrorists. The changes in the education system have to be our responsibility; however, it is advisable to be assisted by external bodies such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which understand the culture and language and have already carried out similar processes themselves. It is also advisable to make the funds coming in from these countries and the international aid funds conditional on the actual roll-out of new education programs.
On top of that, the current leadership of the Palestinian Authority is not an option for the civil administration because they are no better than Hamas and Israel cannot afford to assume such a risk. Another possibility is to assign control to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. This possibility might have been suitable, if not for the fact no Arab country is interested. The desirable course therefore is for civil management to be assigned fully to local leaders, who will evidently be selected from among the large clan leaders. Hamas is extremely fearful of the clans since they pose a serious threat to its existence, especially now that they are beginning to reassert themselves. As opposed to Hamas, the clans seek stability, they have an interest in developing the region, and they have legitimacy from the local populations. Therefore they are the entity with which Israel can and should engage.
Amir Avivi Photo: DANIEL 'STRAVOAnarchy will first and foremost be detrimental to the Strip’s population and in turn pose a threat to Israel. So the establishment of a provisional Israeli civil administration is a moral, much-needed solution for restoration of the Strip which will bring some serenity to a tumultuous area. Therefore, the time has come to jettison unfounded allegations and erroneous concepts and to stop fearing the concept of the much-needed civil administration for Gaza following the war.
- Brigadier General (ret.) Amir Avivi is the Founder and CEO of IDSF (Israel's Defense and Security Forum)