Gaza Faces Silent Genocide Amidst Tightening Blockade and Economic Collapse

According to the International Desk of Webangah News Agency, Gaza has been subjected to a suffocating economic blockade for the past three years, in addition to aerial, ground, and artillery attacks and acts of genocide. This blockade has become a tool for pressure and a silent genocide in Gaza, bearing significant responsibility for the casualties and malnutrition among Gaza’s residents at the hands of the Zionists.

In recent months, with the intensification of the Zionist blockade, a very small portion of Gaza’s population’s needs has entered the region. What enters Gaza primarily consists of humanitarian aid and consumer goods, while the entry of raw materials, energy generation units, spare parts, and equipment necessary for production activities is highly restricted.

The problem for the people of Gaza is not limited to the quantity of goods allowed in, but also the type of goods permitted entry or the delays in their process. The Zionist regime monitors the entry of goods, impacting the supply, prices, and Gaza’s economy’s capacity for rebuilding production capabilities.

Aid Covers Only a Fraction of Needs

The Ministry of Social Development in Gaza has announced that incoming aid covers only about 15 percent of the region’s needs, with over 95 percent of Gaza’s population completely reliant on humanitarian assistance. Furthermore, more than 90 percent of the population has lost their purchasing power.

According to the ministry’s data, approximately 513,000 needy families are registered in the institution’s database. Food, safe drinking water, cash assistance, shelter, medicine and medical equipment, fuel, hygiene materials, protective items, and psychosocial support are among the declared essential needs.

Aziza Al-Kahloot, spokesperson for the Ministry of Social Development in Gaza, outlined the existing problems at three levels: the insufficient volume and continuity of aid, the difficulty in delivering aid to the needy after its arrival in Gaza due to a lack of fuel and transportation means and damage to infrastructure, and the inadequacy of aid diversity to meet evolving needs.

200 Percent Inflation in Gaza

The availability of goods in the market does not necessarily mean people can access them, as the purchasing power of a large segment of Gaza’s residents has drastically decreased. Data from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) indicates that the inflation rate in Gaza remains approximately 200 percent higher than pre-October 2023 levels. This figure reached 206 percent by the end of August.

Mohammed Abu Jiyab, an economic expert, described the current situation as a dual crisis: on one hand, goods arrive in the market at high costs, and on the other hand, people’s purchasing power has significantly diminished. According to him, price increases are not solely due to a shortage of goods; transportation costs, warehousing, energy, and existing risks also affect the final prices of goods.

Consequently, the volume of goods entering cannot be solely assessed by their presence in stores; families’ ability to access and purchase them is also crucial.

One-Fifth of Needs Enter Gaza

According to information from the Gaza Chamber of Commerce, an average of about 200 commercial trucks enter the region daily, while the agreed minimum is around 600 trucks per day. Estimates suggest that approximately 1,000 trucks are needed daily to achieve acceptable market stability and support economic recovery.

Khalil Attallah, Director of Public Relations and Information at the Gaza Chamber of Commerce, emphasized that the composition of imported goods is more important than the number of trucks. He stated that about 95 percent of the goods permitted entry are consumer items, with only about 5 percent related to production.

Based on OCHA data, 3,627 commercial trucks entered Gaza for the private sector last August, which was 116 trucks more than in July. Fuel and oil, vehicle and machinery spare parts, energy equipment, water desalination equipment, agricultural and industrial inputs, and operational equipment are among the most critical supplies needed by the people of Gaza, which the Zionists are preventing from entering.

Tightened Blockade Citing ‘Dual-Use Goods’

Restrictions are not limited to the volume of imports or people’s purchasing power; the list of goods permitted entry and materials classified as ‘dual-use’ by the Zionist regime authorities also affects the volume and type of incoming shipments. According to OCHA, the entry of materials classified as ‘dual-use’ goods remains highly limited, with these items facing a longer permit acquisition process that often leads to rejections.

Tents, tarpaulins, wood, ropes, tape, tools, cooking equipment, and solar energy systems are among the items that can be affected by these restrictions, hindering the development of shelter initiatives and winter preparedness. Mohammed Abu Jiyab believes that Gaza’s economic revival will not begin solely with increased aid; trade and production must also be revived concurrently. He noted that aid is essential for survival, but trade enables the economy to move again, and the entry of production inputs provides opportunities for employment and income.

According to data from the Gaza Chamber of Commerce, the number of importers, which exceeded 2,000 before the war, has now decreased to 10 to 13 importers. This reduction has occurred despite increased risks and costs, in addition to entry and movement restrictions.

Winter Preparedness

Mohammed Mansour, spokesperson for the Egyptian Committee in the Gaza Strip, announced that a large Egyptian convoy was dispatched to central Gaza on Sunday. Given the approaching winter and harsh weather conditions, this convoy included food packages, tents, medicine packages, and blankets for distribution among displaced families and those residing in dilapidated tents.

According to the provided statistics, between September 27 and October 3, 2026, approximately 13,000 tons of aid and 75,000 food baskets were delivered to Gaza from Egypt through six caravans of the ‘Zad Al-Izz’ initiative. The Egyptian Red Crescent reported that last week alone, it delivered about 3,000 tons of liquid fuel needed for hospitals and vital facilities to Gaza. The total aid delivered by this organization since the start of the war in Gaza has been announced at approximately one million tons.