The Gaza Strip is a war-torn, poverty-stricken area of 365 square kilometers, living under an illegal and tightening blockade on land, air and sea that entered its tenth year in June 2016. The blockade, along with armed violence and recurrent conflict, remains the primary cause of the socio-economic and psychosocial crisis in the Gaza Strip. Restrictions on the movement of people and goods continue to collectively punish the civilian population, impacting all aspects of life in Gaza, undermining the local economy and threatening the enjoyment of most human rights, in clear violation of Israel’s legal obligations under international humanitarian law. In addition, since the restrictions imposed by the Egyptian authorities came into effect in June, the Rafah border crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt has remained closed except for a limited number of days per year. But what does it mean to live under blockade? During June 2016, UNRWA shares the stories of Jihad, Amjad, Salwa and Hiam, and their daily struggle to make ends meet: Jihad searches through the rubble of the devastating 2014 conflict to find steel and stones to sell in the local market. Fisherman Amjad often returns from the Gaza sea to his family empty-handed due to the restrictions that have disrupted their livelihoods and drastically reduced the fish catch. Hiam and her sick son are anxiously awaiting a permit from Israel to leave the Gaza Strip for medical treatment. For Salwa and her family, running water is just a distant dream.
Their stories are real stories. Their lives are real lives – and they are just four stories out of thousands of people living in similar circumstances in the Gaza Strip, where restrictions have reduced access to livelihoods, basic services, housing and family life, disrupted and undermined people’s hopes for a secure and prosperous future. What remains are feelings of despair, frustration and helplessness.
The situation in the Gaza Strip is alarming and unbearable, and is getting worse every day, sapping their resilience. The people of Gaza deserve to live. The blockade must be lifted now.
Jaafar Abdul Karim Al-Khabouri
