Reconstruction of destroyed homes finally begins in Gaza The construction materials needed to repair the enormous damage resulting from the 2014 hostilities have been entering Gaza since October 2014 under the framework of the Gaza…
My name is Mohammad Asad Muhaeisen, I am 31 years old, from Ash Shuja’iyeh neighbourhood in Gaza city. During the war last summer, I was documenting the war through my camera lens. Despite being in constant…
Shortly after the start of the hostilities, Naim Nasmi Balatah, aged 45, relocated with his family to the house of his brother, Abdul-Kareem, which was made from concrete rather than asbestos and was considered safer. On 29 July, Abdul-Kareem’s house was struck by several Israeli air missiles, most likely precision guided munitions, which indicates that the home may have been directly targeted. Eleven family members were killed and another 41 civilians, including 17 children and five women, were wounded.
1.8 million Palestinians in Gaza are ‘locked in’, denied free access to the remainder of the occupied Palestinian territory and the outside world. Movement restrictions imposed by Israel since the early 1990’s and intensified in June 2007, citing security concerns, have undermined the living conditions in Gaza and fragmented the oPt and its economic and social fabric.
The summer 2014 hostilities resulted in the largest displacement recorded in Gaza since 1967. Almost one year after the hostilities, there has been little progress in the reconstruction of houses totally destroyed, prolonging the suffering of displaced people.
In a statement released one year after the escalation of hostilities in Gaza, the Humanitarian Coordinator for the occupied Palestinian territory, Robert Piper, expressed continuing concern over the ongoing humanitarian situation and the slow pace of reconstruction in the Gaza Strip. “Gaza is still in crisis, with civilians as always, paying the highest price,” observed Mr. Piper following a meeting of humanitarian organizations held in Gaza city.
An Israeli airstrike in June 2006 targeting the Gaza Power Plant (GPP) marked the start of an electricity crisis in the Gaza Strip, which is still ongoing. Since then, the chronic electricity deficit has disrupted the delivery of basic services and undermined already vulnerable livelihoods and living conditions. In the short term, all stakeholders need to ensure that the GPP is supplied with enough fuel to operate at full capacity.
