crisis has become stifling following the tight restrictions on movement imposed by
measures to address the Corona pandemic, as shops and tourist facilities incurred
millions of losses during the past months. Unemployment reached extremely high and
unprecedented rates in the Gaza Strip, where it was already high, and significantly, even
before the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, reaching 43%19.
The Israeli aggression exacerbated this situation and increased the size of the economic
losses in the Gaza Strip. Especially since the Israeli occupation announced the closure
of commercial crossings with the Gaza Strip as soon as the aggression began20. The
government media office announced in a statement issued at noon, Tuesday, May 18,
2021, that the total losses caused by the continuous Israeli aggression amounted to
(243.8) million US dollars21. These numbers are increasing, and perhaps multiplying,
given the fact that the Israeli aggression continues at an escalating pace.
The agricultural sector has suffered great losses, due to the intense Israeli bombing of
agricultural lands, as well as animal farms damaged due to the bombing and the scarcity
of fodder due to the closure. The Ministry of Agriculture estimated initial agricultural
sector losses at about $ 5 million22. The damage took the form of direct damage to land
cultivated with vegetables and the total or partial destruction of agricultural
infrastructure (transmission lines and irrigation networks, in addition to agricultural
wells and water reservoirs). Wheatfields, poultry farms, and livestock, in general,
suffered imminent danger due to farmers' inability to attend and market, as the
occupation deliberately targeted farmers in their land, in addition to closing the
crossings23.
On the other hand, the bombing directly destroyed the headquarters of banks, offices,
factories, workshops, and dozens of shops, as the direct losses amounted to (27) million
dollars in the economic and commercial establishments, due to the bombing24. This has
caused heavy losses to the owners, on the one hand, and on the other hand, caused the
loss of the source of livelihood for their workers, in light of unemployment rates
described as the highest in the world in the Gaza Strip. Perhaps the most prominent
example of this is the destruction of Al-Shorouk Tower, which housed dozens of
offices, private clinics, and shops. Its destruction also caused severe damage to dozens
of other commercial stores, as it is located in the most vital commercial areas in Gaza
19
Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, Palestinian Statistics: Announces the main results
of the Labor Force Survey for the fourth quarter of 2020 (October - December, 2020 round),
the impact of the Corona pandemic on the labor market
<http://www.pcbs.gov.ps/postar.aspx ? lang = en & ItemID = 3918>
20
The Palestinian Center for Human Rights, the Israeli authorities close the Beit Hanoun border
crossing and the Gaza Strip Sea, a press release issued on May 10, 2021 <shorturl.at/otzC8>
21
Government Press Office (Gaza), Government Press Office statement, May 14, 2021
22
Ministry of Agriculture (Gaza), Agriculture: The initial losses of the agricultural sector exceed (5
million dollars), <https://moa.gov.ps/?p=7118>
23
Ministry of Agriculture (Gaza), Agriculture: Initial losses of the agricultural sector exceed (2 million
dollars), <https://moa.gov.ps/?p=7112> The Ministry of Agriculture (Gaza), Agriculture warns of a
catastrophe in the animal production sector due to the scarcity of fodder,
<https://moa.gov.ps/?p=7115>
24
Government Press Office (Gaza), Government Press Office statement, May 18, 2021