Trump administration reveals how long it could take to rebuild Gaza

President Donald Trump's Middle East envoy said Thursday it will take as long as 15 years to rebuild the devastated Palestinian territory of Gaza.

It comes after the president doubled down on a plan to make Jordan and Egypt take in as many as 1.5 million Gazans, even though both countries have so far refused.

Meanwhile, his real-estate-investor friend Steve Witkoff finished a visit to Israel soon after Hamas released eight hostages in exchange for 110 prisoners held in Israeli prisons.

Like Trump, he indicated that he was already thinking about how to rebuild Gaza after more than a year of air strikes and military assaults. 

'There has been this perception we can get to a solid plan for Gaza in five years. But its impossible. This is a 10 to 15-year rebuilding plan,' he told Axios. 

The Trump campaign donor, who has business links with Qatar and other Gulf states, was visiting the region to monitor a ceasefire deal.

He became the first U.S. official to visit Gaza in 15 years. 

'There is nothing left standing. Many unexploded ordnances,' he said. 'It is not safe to walk there. It is very dangerous. 

'I wouldn't have known this without going there and inspecting.'

A U.N. assessment estimated that it could take 21 years to clear more than 50 million tonnes of rubble at a cost of up to $1.2 billion. 

The rubble is likely to contain hazardous materials, such as asbestos, and human remains, further complicating reconstruction.

'People are moving north to get back to their homes and see what happened and turn around and leave ... there is no water and no electricity. It is stunning just how much damage occurred there,' he said. 

Witkoff said he had not discussed the relocation plan with Trump, but said the territory looked 'uninhabitable.'

On Saturday, Trump described Gaza as 'literally a demolition site.'

'You’re talking about a million and a half people, and we just clean out that whole thing,' he told reporters traveling with him aboard Air Force One.

He said he had spoken with King Abdullah II of Jordan, and asked him to take more refugees, and planned to make the same request of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi.

But the idea is politically explosive. Gazans fear any effort to move them would be part of an Israeli land grab.

And Egypt and Jordan both said they wanted nothing to do with proposal.

On Thursday, Trump was asked if there was anything he could do to make them think again.

'They will do it. They're going to do it,' he told reporters in the Oval Office of the White House. 

'Okay, we do a lot for them and they're going to do it.'

Trump has in the past mused on Gaza's pleasant climate and Mediterranean location, saying it was ideal for tourism.