The Trump administration is pushing a plan that would involve the construction of temporary housing compounds for Palestinians on the Israeli-occupied side of Gaza, The New York Times reported on Wednesday.
The planning for the camps, which would house Palestinians pre-screened by Israeli intelligence, is being led by Aryeh Lightstone, who previously served as an advisor for former US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman.
The Times report said other US officials involved in the planning came from the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, and are working out of luxury beachfront hotels in Tel Aviv, where rooms run more than $700 per night.
Jared Kushner, President Trump’s son-in-law, who has been deeply involved in Gaza negotiations, has also been pushing the plan to start building in the Israeli-occupied side of Gaza as a way to pressure Hamas.
Arab and European officials have warned that the plan could solidify the Israeli occupation of more than 50% of Gaza’s territory and turn the “yellow line” into a de facto border. The plan also does nothing to address the dire situation for the dire situation in the Hamas-controlled side of Gaza, where the US and Israel are not allowing reconstruction to take place.
The vast majority of the estimated two million civilians living in Gaza are on the Hamas-controlled side. The US plan would involve building several compounds that could hold about 25,000 people each, a fraction of the civilians in Gaza. The idea is to provide housing that is more substantial than tents but still temporary, such as trailers or container homes.
The Times report said that some officials have raised concerns that the housing compounds would feel like internment camps, and Israeli officials have said that once the Palestinians enter the areas, they shouldn’t be able to leave.
US officials are also considering using the so-called “International Stabilization Force” to provide security for the camps, but it’s unclear if the force will be assembled as the Trump administration’s ceasefire plan, which Israel continues to violate, has not made much progress.
The Trump administration has reportedly been in contact with Israeli-backed militias and gangs who operate on the Israeli side of the yellow line about “enforcing order in Gaza. One of the gangs, led by Yasser Abu Shabab, who admitted in 2024 that his group was looting aid trucks, has members with ties to ISIS.
US officials told the Times that Israeli forces are expected to begin clearing rubble for the first compound to be built in Rafah, southern Gaza. It’s unclear who will fund the construction first camp, which is expected to cost tens of millions of dollars.
