Urban Warfare Experts Warn: Decades-Long Gaza Reconstruction Impossible Without Hamas’ Total Defeat

Rebuilding Gaza is impossible without Hamas’s complete removal, according to urban warfare specialists John Spencer and Liam Collins, who argue that any reconstruction effort will be futile if the terror group remains in control.

Their analysis comes after President Donald Trump laid out a bold vision for Gaza’s future, suggesting the United States would take control of the region and lead its reconstruction. 

“The U.S. will take over the Gaza Strip, and we will do a job with it too… We’re going to develop it, create thousands and thousands of jobs, and it’ll be something that the entire Middle East can be very proud of,” he told reporters last week.

He has doubled down on this proposal in multiple statements since.

In their recent article, Spencer and Collins highlight a critical issue: “No country or international body has stepped forward to provide the necessary security and oversight” for Gaza’s reconstruction, a prerequisite for any meaningful rebuilding effort. They also note that “Hamas has actively opposed the evacuation of civilians,” using roadblocks and human shields to prevent movement, which they argue complicates stabilization efforts.

Spencer, a leading urban warfare strategist and executive director of the Urban Warfare Institute, and Collins, a former U.S. Army Special Forces officer and deputy director of the institute, emphasize that Gaza must first be cleared of explosive hazards, placed under international oversight, and secured against Hamas’s resurgence.

“Before any meaningful rebuilding can begin, Hamas must unilaterally acknowledge its defeat,” they write, noting that, “Without Hamas’s total defeat—both militarily and politically—any rebuilding efforts will simply fuel the next war.”

Unparalleled Urban Destruction

The authors, both experts in urban warfare and military strategy, describe Gaza’s devastation as “far beyond what has been seen” in past urban battles, citing UN estimates that 66% of its structures have been damaged or destroyed. 

Unlike single-city conflicts such as Mosul or Aleppo, Gaza is a densely populated region with multiple urban centers, making reconstruction more complex.

They also highlight how Hamas has spent decades fortifying Gaza into one of the most militarized urban battlefields in history. Beneath the ruins, 350 to 450 miles of tunnels allow terrorists to move freely, stockpile weapons, and evade attacks — creating another obstacle to any reconstruction efforts.

Explosive Hazards and Military Risks

Spencer and Collins warn that before any reconstruction can begin, a full-scale military clearance operation will be required to remove deadly remnants of war:

• Unexploded ordnance: The UN estimates that up to 7,500 metric tons of live munitions remain buried in the rubble, requiring over a decade to clear.
• Booby-trapped buildings: Hamas has rigged many standing structures with explosives, making even intact buildings potential death traps.
• Underground stockpiles: Hamas has hidden weapons throughout its tunnel network, ensuring that any future rebuilding effort remains vulnerable to attacks.

The authors compare Gaza’s situation to Somalia, where a U.S. humanitarian mission escalated into full-scale combat operations. They warn that if Hamas is not fully removed from power, reconstruction efforts could lead to renewed conflict rather than stability.

Cost and Scale of Rebuilding

With the scale of destruction meaning Gaza’s reconstruction would be one of the most expensive and complex post-war rebuilding efforts in modern history, the authors reference past efforts to put this challenge in context:

• Mosul, Iraq: Reconstruction following ISIS’s defeat was estimated at $88 billion.
• Marawi, Philippines: Restoring a much smaller city cost nearly $969 million, yet much of it remains abandoned years later.
• Aleppo, Syria: A decade after its destruction, many districts remain uninhabitable due to the overwhelming costs of rebuilding.

Given Gaza’s urban density, pre-war infrastructure challenges, and scale of destruction, the cost could exceed $100 billion and require decades of work — not just to rebuild homes, but also to reconstruct essential infrastructure such as water desalination plants, sewage systems, and power grids.

The authors conclude that before reconstruction can begin, Hamas must be completely removed from power to prevent future conflict, a full-scale military clearance operation must eliminate unexploded munitions and dismantle Hamas’s tunnel network, and international funding and expertise must be mobilized to oversee the unprecedented rebuilding effort.

The matter comes as a newly uncovered Hamas document revealed the terror group’s desperate attempts to prevent Palestinian emigration, with Hamas serving as the biggest barrier to Gazans seeking a better life, as President Trump proposes relocating Gazans to safer, more stable countries.

Joshua Klein is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow him on Twitter @JoshuaKlein.