Gaza unemployment

Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza weeks into Operation Protective Edge, on August 9, 2014. (Basel Yazouri/Activestills.org)

How Israel’s blockade exacerbates violence against women in Gaza

Women in Gaza deal with patriarchal gender norms and intra-Palestinian political divides, but addressing their needs cannot be realized without Israel lifting its blockade. By Anwar Mhajne Violence during military operations affects both men and women, but women often face a unique set of challenges. For Palestinian women in Gaza in particular, the interaction between patriarchy,…

By +972 Magazine May 17, 2019

Palestinian refugees play in an impoverished area in Gaza City on January 17, 2018, after the White House froze tens of millions of dollars in aid to UNRWA. (Wissam Nassar/Flash90)

Humanitarian aid to Palestinians ‘at an all-time low,’ UN warns

The funding crisis is particularly devastating in the Gaza Strip, where humanitarian officials say basic services such as education, health, and food security have been reduced to a minimum. By Fidaa Shurrab Funding for humanitarian activities in the occupied Palestinian territories is “at an all-time low,” according to a UN agency responsible for humanitarian affairs in…

By +972 Magazine October 25, 2018

Palestinian children do their homework by candlelight at their home in Rafah refugee camp, in the southern Gaza Strip, on February 15, 2018. (Abed Rahim Khatib/ Flash90)

Could solar energy solve the Gaza electricity crisis?

The Gaza Strip has been suffering from a severe electricity crisis for years. Now, solar energy is on the rise as a more reliable alternative, one that may afford Gazans a degree of independence from Israel. By Ibrahim Abdelhadi Two years ago, when the lights went out along Gaza’s shore, the Hindi family lit up some candles in…

By +972 Magazine September 21, 2018

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Palestinians wait at the Rafah border crossing with Egypt, in the southern Gaza Strip, after it was opened for two days by Egyptian authorities, May 11, 2016. (Abed Rahim Khatib/ Flash90)

‘Gazans need to be able to breathe and feel hope for the future’

It’s impossible to know just how much Israel will loosen its restrictions on goods and movement of people in Gaza as it negotiates with Hamas. What’s clear is that a new approach is needed. Israel and Hamas are in the advanced stages of negotiations over a ceasefire, according to numerous media reports, that, in exchange for an…

By Edo Konrad August 6, 2018

Street vendors seen on the Gaza promenade. (Mohamed Al Hajjar)

For many Gazans, the sea is the only escape from the siege

Beset by a tightening siege, surging unemployment, and a lack of electricity, Gazans of all ages end up spending their evenings near the sea. Some go to flee hardships back home, while others depend on it in order to make a living.

By +972 Magazine July 23, 2018

Fadi al Najjar, 24, in his destroyed home in the village of Khuza'a, eastern Gaza Strip, November 7, 2014. Six family members stay in the living room, which is the only room which was not destroyed. Fadi lost all his money and his animals, during the last Israeli assault. He is now contemplating on getting married and lives in the caravan which has been allocated to his father Adnan. Big holes in the walls have been barely covered by pieces of wood and plastic sheet. Many Palestinians in the Gaza Strip face hard living conditions following the seven-week Israeli offensive during which 2,131 Palestinians were killed, and an estimate of 18,000 housing units have been either destroyed or severely damaged, leaving more than 108,000 people homeless. (photo: Anne Paq/Activestills.org)

Prolonging Gaza’s suffering isn’t only unwise, it’s just plain wrong

Israeli policymakers recognize that they control the situation in Gaza. If their sense of moral obligation doesn’t compel them to correct it, at the very least their interests should. By Tania Hary Israelis woke up on Wednesday to headlines about renewed talks, or rather arguments, about a possible seaport in Gaza. Just hours before, the…

By +972 Magazine February 25, 2016