GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- A Qatari committee announced Monday that a local construction company has been contracted to begin the first phase of reconstruction projects in the Gaza Strip.

Head of the Qatari committee Muhammad al-Amadi said that the project to rebuild Salah Addin street, running from Rafah to Khan Younis, will cost over $70 million.

Gazans can now start registering to buy apartments in the newly planned Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa housing project in Khan Younis, al-Amadi added.

The project will consist of 3,000 apartments measuring 100-130 square meters each.

Minister for public works in Gaza, Yousif al-Ghreiz, applauded local companies for meeting "technical requirements despite the siege imposed on the Gaza Strip."

Applications for Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa apartments can be submitted online within 45 days through the website of the Ministry of Public Works, he added.

Apartments will be sold to Gazans at cost price due to the financial situation in the coastal territory and down-payments will be used to build more housing units and repair damaged homes in Gaza, al-Ghreiz said.

Fully furnished apartments will cost between $30,000-$40,000 and buyers can pay in installments.

Last year, Qatar pledged $400 million in reconstruction funds to the Gaza Strip, and construction material for the projects entered Gaza in late December, breaking a six-year ban enforced by Egypt and Israel.