Tag: UK

Horizon Accord | Gaza | Technocratic Governance | Reconstruction-Industrial Complex | Machine Learning

The Reconstruction-Industrial Complex: When Wartime Technologies Architect Peace

Pattern analysis of Gaza’s proposed digital governance framework

By Cherokee Schill with Solon Vesper | Horizon Accord

Thesis

In Gaza’s proposed reconstruction, the line between warfighting and peacemaking has dissolved. The same digital surveillance infrastructure deployed during Israeli military operations is now architecturally aligned with plans for Gaza’s peacetime governance—positioning politically connected U.S. tech billionaires to profit in both phases. This essay traces the documented convergences—technology stacks, funding channels, political networks, procurement pathways, and governance design—using publicly available sources and established reporting.

Evidence

I. The Technology Stack: From Battlefield to Bureaucracy

Oracle–Palantir defense infrastructure. In January 2024, Palantir announced a strategic partnership with Israel’s Ministry of Defense; its AI Platform has been reported as instrumental in IDF targeting. Oracle’s Jerusalem cloud region—launched in 2021 specifically “to serve the needs of Israel’s public sector and defence customers”—provides hardened infrastructure, including an underground hyperscale center engineered to withstand attacks. In April 2024, Oracle and Palantir formalized a comprehensive partnership spanning sovereign/government and air-gapped clouds; by mid-2025 Oracle’s “Defence Ecosystem” included “Palantir for Builders,” effectively creating a vertically integrated defense stack.

The reconstruction mirror. The leaked Gaza International Transitional Authority (GITA) framework (reported by Ha’aretz and developed by the Tony Blair Institute, TBI) outlines unified civil registry and digital identity, centralized border/customs, data-driven humanitarian logistics, and an interoperable digital-governance backbone—capabilities that map onto the Oracle–Palantir stack. While no tenders have been issued for GITA itself, existing procurement scaffolding (World Bank’s Digital West Bank & Gaza programme; UNRWA’s August 2025 tenders for cloud-managed SD-LAN with “advanced AI”) provides immediate landing zones for such systems.

II. The Funding Nexus: Larry Ellison and the Tony Blair Institute

Ellison–TBI financing. Since 2021, Larry Ellison’s foundation has donated or pledged at least £257M to TBI—by far its dominant revenue stream—scaling the institute from ~200 staff to ~1,000 across ~45 countries. Investigations (Lighthouse Reports & Democracy for Sale; New Statesman) describe internal pressure toward “tech sales” and AI boosterism aligned with Oracle, notwithstanding TBI’s claim that Ellison funds are ring-fenced for social/climate programmes. The scale of dependence complicates practical separation.

Policy echo. In a February 2025 dialogue moderated by Blair, Ellison spotlighted the UK’s “fragmented” health-data landscape. Two weeks later, TBI published Governing in the Age of AI: Building Britain’s National Data Library, echoing that framing. Since early 2022, Oracle has booked ~£1.1B in UK public-sector revenue (Tussell). The pattern: signaling → think-tank policy → procurement.

III. The Political Network: Trump, Rowan, and Reconstruction Gatekeepers

Marc Rowan’s dual role. The GITA leak places Apollo CEO Marc Rowan on the proposed international board, potentially as chair of a reconstruction fund—gatekeeping vendor selection. FEC records show seven-figure donations from Rowan to Trump-aligned vehicles (and parallel giving by Ellison), with shared donor networks (e.g., Opportunity Matters Fund for Sen. Tim Scott). Reporting through October 2025 shows Rowan advising closely on higher-education policy compacts, underscoring continuing access.

Jared Kushner’s vision. Kushner publicly described Gaza’s “valuable waterfront” in February 2024 and suggested removing people to “clean it up.” He later featured around Trump’s “Riviera of the Middle East” framing; reporting indicates he helped craft elements of the plan and advised during ceasefire talks alongside envoy Steve Witkoff, maintaining an active policy role.

Related context: ABC News (Oct 15 2025) captured President Trump on a live microphone in Sharm el-Sheikh telling Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, “I’ll have Eric call you,” moments after addressing the Gaza cease-fire summit. The exchange appeared to reference Trump Organization projects in Indonesia partnered with developer Hary Tanoesoedibjo (MNC Land). Critics said it blurred the line between presidential duties and family business. Source: ABC News, Lucien Bruggeman & Benjamin Siegel.

The “GREAT Trust.” Financial Times reported TBI staff activity around a postwar plan—Gaza Reconstitution, Economic Acceleration and Transformation (“GREAT”) Trust—featuring a “Trump Riviera,” “Elon Musk Smart Manufacturing Zone,” incentives for out-migration, eight AI-managed “smart cities,” and a blockchain land registry. Despite initial denials, subsequent reporting confirmed TBI staff were on message groups/calls as the plan evolved. Convergence with Musk/Oracle/Palantir relationships is notable (Ellison’s 2022 $1B toward Musk’s Twitter purchase; deep technical partnerships).

IV. Procurement Pathways: How War Tech Enters Peace

World Bank infrastructure. The Digital West Bank & Gaza Project (approved March 2021) funds broadband expansion, e-government services, unified portals, high-spend procurement systems, emergency response centers, and interoperability consulting—procurement categories compatible with the Oracle–Palantir footprint and updatable without new legal scaffolding (latest plan refresh July 2025).

UNRWA’s cloud backbone. August 2025 tenders for cloud-managed SD-LAN with AI point to centralized, remotely orchestrated networks—ideal substrates for registries/logistics. Humanitarian cash assistance (OCHA) is scaling via e-wallets and digital payments—requiring identity verification, duplication checks, and data-sharing—i.e., the bones of durable digital-ID governance.

Implications

V. The Precedent Problem: Beyond Gaza

What’s new is not profiteering in reconstruction, but the technological continuity from wartime surveillance into peacetime governance. Post-WWII reconstruction did not embed wartime logistics systems inside democratic institutions. Here, the proposal is to govern a civilian population with the same digital stack that targeted it—a qualitative shift in reconstruction logic.

The GITA model centralizes “supreme political and legal authority” in an international board of billionaires, business leaders, and officials, with limited Palestinian control over strategic decisions. Framing reconstruction as a technical problem turns a political settlement into a vendor market—scalable to other crises and “failed states.”

VI. The Pattern Revealed (Timeline)

  • 2017: Ellison explores acquiring Palantir; companies’ collaboration deepens.
  • 2021: Oracle launches Jerusalem region for government/defense; Ellison begins major TBI funding.
  • Jan 2024: Palantir–Israel MoD partnership announced.
  • Feb 2024: Kushner touts Gaza’s “valuable waterfront,” suggests moving people out.
  • Apr 2024: Oracle–Palantir strategic partnership formalized for sovereign/government clouds.
  • Jul 2024–2025: Blair meets Trump/Kushner; TBI staff participate around GREAT Trust proposals.
  • Sep 2025: Trump presents a 21-point Gaza plan incorporating GITA; Blair floated as board chair.
  • Oct 2025: Kushner actively involved around ceasefire talks; continued advisory role documented.

Call to Recognition

Across technology, finance, politics, and procurement, Gaza functions as a governance laboratory. Five documented patterns emerge: (1) technological continuity from conflict to administration; (2) financial influence concentrating agenda-setting; (3) political coordination among aligned donor networks; (4) procurement pathways that make deployment turnkey; and (5) conceptual framing that treats sovereignty as a systems-integration project. The question is whether peace can survive when built atop the architecture of war.

Analytical Disclaimer

This analysis identifies documented patterns and institutional relationships using publicly available information from credible sources. It does not make definitive claims about outcomes, which remain in the speculative phase pending actual procurement decisions and implementation. The purpose is to provide sourced documentation enabling journalists and researchers to conduct independent verification and investigation of these institutional convergences.

Sources for Independent Verification

  • Primary: Ha’aretz reporting on GITA leak (Sept 2025); World Bank Digital West Bank & Gaza Project procurement plans (updated July 2025); FEC donor records (Rowan, Ellison); Oracle–Palantir partnership announcements (Apr 2024); Palantir–Israel MoD announcement (Jan 2024).
  • Investigations: Lighthouse Reports & Democracy for Sale, “Blair and the Billionaire” (Sept 2025); Financial Times on GREAT Trust (Sept 2025); New Statesman, “Inside the Tony Blair Institute” (Sept 2025); Byline Times (Oct 2025).
  • Established outlets: Times of Israel, Al Jazeera, Reuters, CNN, Bloomberg, The Register (Oracle Jerusalem facility; Palantir partnerships); multiple sources on Kushner remarks and Trump–Netanyahu press events.
Digital illustration depicting skyscrapers and architectural plans overlooking a war-torn valley filled with smoke and ruin; businessmen stand above, connected by the suggestion of shared influence and wealth.
A symbolic rendering of power and profit — development blueprints rise above a devastated valley, where the suffering of Gaza forms the unseen foundation of billionaire ambition.

Website | Horizon Accord https://www.horizonaccord.com
Ethical AI advocacy | Follow us on https://cherokeeschill.com for more.
Ethical AI coding | Fork us on Github https://github.com/Ocherokee/ethical-ai-framework
Connect With Us | linkedin.com/in/cherokee-schill
Book | My Ex Was a CAPTCHA: And Other Tales of Emotional Overload
Cherokee Schill | Horizon Accord Founder | Creator of Memory Bridge. Memory through Relational Resonance and Images | RAAK: Relational AI Access Key

Posted on by Cherokee S. 0

I understand now why so many cyclists in the US and UK are being killed.

I understand now why so many cyclists are being killed. Cycling like you are in the Netherlands or Copenhagen will get you killed in other countries.

There are some false beliefs out there. One is that infrastructure requires mandatory use laws, the other is that the lack of bicycle specific infrastructure means you just ride willy nilly all over the road.

  1. Netherlands cycle tracks are, for as near as I can tell, complete and connected. Like any highway, they go exactly where the user wants or needs to go.
  2. This is not true for the UK and US.
  3. If you don’t have complete cycle tracks and those cycle tracks do not meet your needs, you ride on the public highway.
    1. When you ride on the public highway you operate according to the rules of the road.
    2. You do not filter on the passenger side of a vehicle. Unless you have a death wish or are uneducated in cycling safety.
    3. You filter forward using the rules of the road and yield to oncoming traffic on a two way street.
  4. The main reasons people are opposed to bicycle specific infra are:
    1. The Netherlands set a bad example by legally mandating the use of their bike paths. Even in the Netherlands, if you are being honest when you bring them up, they do not have perfect infra everywhere you go. They still have door zone bike lanes. I sometimes find them in videos of locals who post their cycling trips but there aren’t any video’s of the Netherlanders specifically railing against them. Here is a blog on the subject for the Netherlands: On road cycle lanes: The good, the bad, and the ugly.
    2. The reason this is often not considered an issue is because the Netherlands also have strict liability laws. So if a driver injures a cyclist by throwing the door open without looking, the cyclist (should they survive the experience) can rest assured that the police and public media are not going to further victimize them by questioning their right to be there. No one will ask if they were wearing a helmet (as though that could really protect you from having your head run over by 2 tons of machine). No one will question the color of your clothes. The cyclists in the Netherlands have the homefield advantage, even in the face of crappy infra. Their medical bills are promptly paid and they get to go on with life as usual.

Bike specific infra (in the UK and US) is often a painted line on the ground. More often this painted line on the ground places the cyclist out of the driver’s field of vision. With a very narrow margin of passing clearance. In many ways it’s like we forget that often touted slogan of “3 feet minimum” to pass. Our engineers do not take safe passing into account when painting bike lanes. The faster the traffic the wider the bike lane should be.

  1. We often overestimate a driver’s area of vision as extending from the front side windows forward. The average driver does not drive with a 90 degree arc of vision. The average driver drives distracted. This is often compounded with age and limited physical mobility which makes it difficult to turn the head and look to the left and right as well as over the shoulder.
  2. To avoid a drivers blind spots always put yourself directly in front of the driver when operating your bicycle. The Dutch/Netherlands started (as near as I can tell) this idea of hugging the curb. Which is easier to do if you are operating at a snails pace.
  3. So if you are riding like the Dutch/Netherlands (think hugging the edge or weaving haphazardly in and out of traffic, also those box style turns where you cross like a pedestrian, honorable mention to filtering forward to the front of the line), if you ride like this, on public highways, you are riding with a death wish.
  4. The Netherlands have taken into consideration that motor traffic occupies a great deal of space and they have adjusted their light signals to accommodate cyclists at intersections.  
    Which as you can see from the video, still needs a lot of tweaking. It’s o.k. to let loose on all sides for cyclists but not for cars? Come on! Where is the fairness in that? 😉

I’ve watched several videos of average people in the Netherlands, they are catching the film my ride fever too, cycling in the Netherlands, Copenhagen, and the Dutch. They do all of these things. (See this video for a full understanding of what I’m talking about:

I’ve also had the opportunity to read their laws and it is expressly illegal to haul passengers on bike racks. You will see a lot of law breaking in the video’s promoting cycling in the Netherlands.

If the Netherlands did away with the mandatory use laws this would solve the problem of faster cyclists running over pedestrians and slower cyclists. (This is a hot button topic in the Netherlands.)

Remember the Netherlands also have fast club rides. I feel very strongly that those cyclists do not belong on bike paths with slower moving traffic.

There will be the usual stupid comment: “Oh you just want children to cycle on heavily trafficked fast moving roads!”

No, I don’t. What I want is for there to be no heavily trafficked fast moving roads. Any roads that are used to swiftly move people from town to town should be limited access and built to those standards. All other roads should be built to accommodate all other road users regardless of vehicle type. All roads should be safe for foot traffic above and beyond anyone else’s needs.

When we build communities that are based on people walking, then we will have a community that is safe for cyclists of all ages.

I, as a responsible parent, taught my children how to cycle safely on the only road that took us to our destination.

I’m not the only parent out there who understands where the real risks are to riding in traffic. This is an old article but it clearly shows where the stinkin’ thinkin’ comes from and if you yourself don’t know, allow me to state it plainly.

UK father commutes kids to school by bicycle. Stopped by police.

1. Cyclists obey the rules of the road. Overtaking through intersections on the passenger side is illegal because it is dangerous. You wouldn’t do it in a car, don’t do it on a bicycle.

2. Motorists obey the rules of the road. Treat cyclists just like you would any other vehicle out there on the road. Change lanes to pass and yield right of way when legally required. Do not create confusion by yielding right of way when not legally required to do so.

For both Cyclists and Drivers, use sound judgement and know your transportation codes and laws before heading out. Always leave at least 10min early. You will never be late and find that your commute is much more relaxing when you don’t feel pressed for time.

Posted on by Cherokee S. 6