What happens to Gaza if Israel destroys Hamas?

(NewsNation) — Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas following the deadliest attack in Israel in decades.

But if Hamas was removed from Gaza, questions remain about who would govern the territory and what it would take to rebuild an area — already rife with poverty — after military operations end.

With Hamas taken out, a power vacuum would be created. The obvious choice to lead would be the Palestinian Authority, which governs the West Bank and East Jerusalem and is led by President Mahmoud Abbas, a member of the opposing political party, Fatah.

“I would think this would be the only group that would be acceptable to Israel as Hezbollah is a terrorist group, Qatar harbors Hamas, and Iran wants to ‘wipe Israel off the face of the Earth,’” said NewsNation national security correspondent Tracy Walder.

But while the Palestinian Authority may be an obvious choice, it’s not clear the Palestinian people will accept the party, which was defeated in elections in 2006 when Hamas won a majority of seats in a victory built on decades of conflict between Israel and Palestine and discontent with Fatah.

While Abbas regained control of the West Bank and East Jerusalem, backed by Western allies, Hamas continued to control Gaza. The group built and maintained support in part by offering social services like clinics, schools and food banks.

Whether Hamas still has support from the people is somewhat of an unknown since those were the last elections held, Jamil Jaffer, founder of the National Security Institute at George Mason University, explained.

“The Palestinian Authority is the only really viable alternative. The problem is that we don’t know how they’re viewed in Gaza since Gazans haven’t had a real chance to weigh in since 2006,” Jaffer said.

The thing about the Palestinian Authority that makes the group appealing to Israel – assisting with security – is the same one that may also make it less credible to Palestinians, Jaffer noted.

Other options include an Israeli rule, which the country has shown no appetite for taking on. Previously, Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005, and recently, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has said Israel would end all its responsibility for Gaza after the defeat of Hamas. That includes supplying the area with basic needs, something the United Nations considers Israel responsible for.

Some have suggested there could be a temporary period where the U.N. or a coalition of Arab nations would govern until Gaza’s political future is determined.

Regardless of who governs, it’s certain Gaza will require significant rebuilding. Israeli air strikes have already done significant damage to the area, and Walder noted a predicted ground assault is likely to do serious damage to Gaza’s infrastructure.

“It won’t be completely leveled; however, it will not be habitable,” she said.

Even before the current war against Hamas, 80% of Gazans relied on international aid, though the U.S. and European Union do not supply aid to Hamas because of its designation as a terrorist group.

“Potentially two million people will be displaced, and it will take years if not decades to rebuild,” Walder said. “I would like to see members of the Arab world step in and help rebuild as I think that is better than having a Western nation do so.  However, the rebuilding cannot be done without the U.N. and an immense amount of foreign assistance provided.”

Even if Hamas’ military capability is destroyed, there is still the possibility the group will come back amidst support from Palestinians or that another militant group, like Palestinian Islamic Jihad, which also has a foothold in Gaza, could gain strength.

That means the international community, which will likely shoulder much of the cost of rebuilding Gaza, will need assurances that any assistance is helping Palestinian civilians.

“If we’re going to put money into these situations, there have to be clear and reliable assurances – if those can even exist – the money isn’t going to illicit purposes, to Hamas or Hamas leadership,” Jaffer said.