Overview
- Financial Times reporting late last week found the World Bank‑administered fund set up for the Peace Council had received zero donor deposits, a claim repeated by multiple outlets.
- The Council disputes that it lacks liquidity and says donors used other financing mechanisms instead of the World Bank vehicle.
- Only limited transfers are publicly known — roughly $20 million from the United Arab Emirates and $3 million from Morocco — and some member payments were routed to a JPMorgan account that lacks the World Bank’s transparency rules.
- U.S. officials have kept about $1.2 billion in planned Gaza projects from being disbursed to the Council until independent financial controls are put in place and Congress receives legal clarity.
- The Council is not operating inside Gaza, citing Hamas’s failure to disarm and restricted access, and experts warn the financing stalemate is prolonging civilian suffering while full reconstruction needs remain far larger than the Council’s pledged package.