Shaimaa Eid – Survival Economy: How Economic Life Operates in Gaza Under Genocide

A first hand account of what survival looks like in Gaza currently

Shaimaa Eid is a journalist based in Gaza

This is the second article we are posting by Shaimaa in Gaza. The first one we financed with our personal donations as BRAVE NEW EUROPE has no funds for this. This one was made possible by a donation by two readers of BRAVE NEW EUROPE. If you wish to make a third article possible you can donate 200 euros or Pounds, which is what we pay Shaimaa, for an article HERE Please drop us a line telling us that you made the donation for that purpose: info@braveneweurope.com

Food: From UNRWA to the Black Market and Armed Groups

When the structure of an entire society is dismantled through bombing, displacement, starvation, and genocide, the very concept of “economy” is radically transformed. In Gaza today, there is no longer an economy in the traditional sense, but rather a fragile – and often exploitative – system driven purely by survival. Formal markets and stable employment have collapsed, replaced by black markets, reliance on aid, and innovation born out of catastrophe and hunger.

When Israel’s genocidal war began in October 2023, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) served as the backbone of food aid distribution in Gaza. Despite the restrictions imposed by the blockade, its operations were relatively organized and maintained a degree of transparency and credibility. However, after UNRWA’s funding was suspended and its role sidelined, everything changed. International organizations and the “Gaza Humanitarian Foundation” (GHF) – backed by the U.S. and Israel – took over the management of aid, marking a drastic shift in the system.

In the Gaza Strip, food is now being distributed through designated “distribution points” that resemble “death traps” marked by chaos and violence. Eyewitness accounts from the field confirm that these locations are often targeted by direct gunfire from Israeli forces at civilians seeking aid. Survivors of these deadly zones report that, on their way back, they are frequently confronted by local armed gangs that control much of the food supplies brought from these points. As a result, food distribution in Gaza is no longer based on need – it depends on money, personal connections, or the ability to survive the deadly scramble.

Money: An Economy Without Jobs or Banks

Banks have closed, institutions have been destroyed, and most businesses have come to a halt. Money has become scarce. Those who still have some savings either hide them or spend them quickly for fear that their value will diminish, be confiscated, or destroyed in the war.

These distribution points are not accessible to all residents of the Gaza Strip, as they are often located far from residential areas and require walking long distances. The elderly, children, and women are unable to reach them or endure the chaos and risks involved in getting there.

From this reality, the black market has flourished. A bag of flour that was once distributed as aid is now being sold for up to 3,000 shekels (around 900 USD). Small canned goods that used to cost 5 shekels now sell for 30 or even 40 shekels (about 12 USD). These items are often hoarded and later resold at highly inflated prices. This market is not only exorbitantly priced, but also frequently offers expired or sometimes contaminated goods.

Despite all of this, some community kitchens continue to operate, albeit on a limited scale, preparing large quantities of lentils and distributing them to displaced families. These initiatives are run with minimal resources and small donations from outside the Gaza Strip.

As for the food I personally consume, it has completely changed. Living now under famine conditions, I survive on a single daily meal made from lentil bread, which I resorted to baking after flour disappeared from the market and its price soared on the black market. At times, I go to bed hungry and wake up to work still hungry. Our meals lack protein, vegetables, and essential nutrients. We constantly feel exhausted and hungry.

Only a few still have an income: some employees of humanitarian organizations working in the war zone, freelance workers with foreign media outlets, or those involved in aid distribution. Others work in infrastructure repair or simple trades such as locally producing fuel, charging phones, or selling water.

Class disparities have become evident. Families who previously had financial resources or have relatives abroad enjoy greater access to goods and services. Meanwhile, others rely on donations or remittances sent from abroad, which are difficult to receive and can incur fees of up to 50% or even more.

Most financial organization occurs within families. Households share what they have with one another. There are efforts to pool resources among residents of the same shelter or to share food and money among residents.

Essential Goods: What Can Be Bought or Bartered?

Besides food, fuel, clean water, batteries for nighttime lighting, diapers, medicines, and personal hygiene products are among the most demanded and scarce items. Many of these goods have either disappeared from the markets or their prices have become exorbitant.

Fuel is now sold in small plastic bottles at 150 shekels per liter (around $45 USD). Phone charging-a vital necessity-has become a paid service. Clean water is sold in gallon containers and transported by donkey-drawn carts. Diapers are reused or replaced with pieces of cloth. Women are experiencing a severe shortage of hygiene products. Some are resorting to using wood ash, salty water, or leftover soap.

With the spread of famine, bartering has resurfaced: clothing in exchange for food, a bag of pasta for soap, and so on. Some people still sell, offer, buy, and trade through local Facebook groups-but this requires electricity and internet access, which are not available to everyone. Virtual marketplaces now exist, but they serve only those who still have something to offer.

Shelter: No Reconstruction, Only Remnants of Survival

More than 70% of homes in Gaza have been damaged or destroyed. “Shelter” is no longer about construction-it’s about survival. Families now live in tents, ruined schools, and even cemeteries. They repurpose the rubble of destroyed homes to create makeshift shelters pieced together from plastic sheeting, wood scraps, and debris. Now, with rising temperatures, Gazans are suffering from swarms of mosquitoes and flies, and from sewage water that floods the streets.

Reconstruction is impossible. There’s no cement, no steel, no tools – not even enough safety to build. Some have reinforced their damaged walls with sandbags or plastic sheeting; others have created makeshift ovens inside their tents. Nothing protects from the scorching sun, the flies, or the occasional rain.

Shade has become a luxury. Children are shielded with old umbrellas, cardboard, or UNRWA tarps. When it rains, people dig channels to drain the water or lift their bedding off the muddy ground. Most “homes” now offer neither closure nor shelter.

In conclusion: The transfer of food distribution from UNRWA to the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, without meaningful involvement of local actors, has led to the total collapse of the humanitarian system. Amid this breakdown, aid has become a commodity, and the black market the only lifeline, as Gaza sinks into a systematic famine used as an additional weapon in the ongoing policy of extermination.

In this context, hunger in Gaza no longer appears to be a byproduct of war – it has become one of its primary objectives

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This is the second article we are posting by Shaimaa in Gaza. The first one we financed with our personal donations as BRAVE NEW EUROPE has no funds for this. This one was made possible by a donation by two readers of BRAVE NEW EUROPE. If you wish to make a third article possible you can donate 200 euros or Pounds, which is what we pay Shaimaa, for an article HERE Please drop us a line telling us that you made the donation for that purpose: info@braveneweurope.com