Faced with looters and price gougers: “Where is the Bank of Palestine?” Gaza resident asks TML

Violent gangs and traders take advantage of wartime conditions while prices skyrocket, causing chaos and crowding

(Gaza City) More than a year after the deadly war began, Gazans are struggling to access aid amid widespread criminal activity by violent gangs. In one of the worst incidents to date, nearly 100 aid trucks were looted by criminal groups on November 16, worsening already severe shortages of food, medicine and other supplies for the local population. These gangs, which are not affiliated with Hamas, have exploited the suffering of Gazans and profited from a smuggling industry that drives up food prices in local markets.

The prices are absurd and completely unreasonable. Just look at this crowd. Waiting four hours for a piece of bread is anything but normal.

“The prices are absurd and completely unreasonable,” said a man from Gaza who spoke to The Media Line. “Just look at this crowd. Waiting four hours for a piece of bread is anything but normal.”

He said the price of a loaf of bread had risen to $7.

Muhammad al-Faqawi, a 19-year-old from Khan Yunis, said the price of a bag of flour had reached up to $250. “If I had the chance, I would buy one. People are dying on the streets just to get a single bag,” he told The Media Line. “The rainy season makes life unbearable. Is this the future that young people are destined for?”

Al-Faqawi’s claim that people are dying on the streets is not an exaggeration. Recently, three women who wanted to buy pita were killed in a crowd crush outside a bakery in Deir al Balah.

“I’ve been here since 7 a.m. and after a whole day I finally managed to buy a bag of bread,” a woman who witnessed the crush told The Media Line. “I couldn’t even get into the store. People die just to get in. I don’t have the strength to face it.”

As widespread theft and price gouging on the black market prevent Gazans from obtaining essential supplies, Hamas has created a military force to control the situation. According to the Hamas television channel Al-Aqsa, the force killed at least 20 looters in the November 16 incident.

The Media Line contacted the Hamas handler’s office for comment but declined to respond.

“We are starving and cannot bear this situation. Prices have skyrocketed and we can no longer afford even the basics,” al-Faqawi told The Media Line. “I want to tell the whole world and especially (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu that we can no longer tolerate this. We’re not really living.”

We are starving and cannot bear this situation. Prices have skyrocketed and we can no longer afford even the basics.

He said a 10 shekel coin – the equivalent of about $3 – was “useless” given rampant inflation. “You might as well throw it away,” he said.

Moss Hamdan, a shoemaker from Khan Yunis, described the situation as “terrible”. “Demand for food is high, but a single can of milk costs $10. How can anyone afford this? Staples like oil, sugar and rice are in high demand but they are way too expensive,” he told The Media Line. “I don’t have a job anymore and neither does anyone else. Life here is extremely difficult. Planes fill the sky every day and nothing feels safe or reliable. Everything is for sale, even water. Please make it stop.”

Abdul Majeed Al-Kurd, a trader and money changer, called on authorities to look into the situation. “Traffickers exploit people and force them to pay bribes just to survive,” he told The Media Line.

Al-Kurd has been operating in the foreign exchange market for 40 years. “I refuse to cooperate with unlawful persons,” he said, describing looting and price gouging as violations of Islam.

Unfortunately, the Bank of Palestine encouraged these practices. If the bank claims to promote mercy, it should send employees to the markets, pay people’s salaries and take measures to deal with the crisis. It must pump money into the market and take decisive action – that is its responsibility.

“Unfortunately, the Bank of Palestine encouraged these practices,” he said. “If the bank claims to promote clemency, it should send staff to the markets, pay people’s salaries and take measures to deal with the crisis. She needs to pump money into the market and take decisive action – that is her responsibility.”

Tobacco has become a critical commodity in Gaza. Before the war, a pack of cigarettes cost about $5. Now a single cigarette can cost $49. For this reason, many people have found alternative ways to sell tobacco at cheaper prices.

“We are trying to reduce prices so that people can afford to smoke,” Muhammad al Aqraa, a tobacco seller from Deir al Balah, told The Media Line. “We sell cigarettes for $7 or $8 because the economic situation is terrible. Those who had money spent it entirely during the war, while some traders continued to exploit others.”

“As young people, we want to smoke, but it’s just unaffordable,” he said.

Nael Abu Amara, a tobacco seller from Gaza City, said the price of cigarettes rose from $20 to $55 over the course of a day.

“God never commanded people or traders to treat us like this. The prices people are facing are unfair and unacceptable – neither we nor God can tolerate such actions,” he told The Media Line.

Most families in Gaza have numerous children and parents struggle desperately to provide for their most basic needs.

Sharifs Al-Hajj, a pregnant mother from Deir al Balah, told The Media Line that she had to beg for bread to satisfy hunger. She said the price of sugar rose from about $1.50 to $14.

“There is no electricity, no food and no healthcare. There is no margarine, chicken, chickpeas, corn – nothing at all,” she said.

She said she and her children had recently experienced bombings and were in desperate need of milk, medical care and warm clothing.

We have lost everything. We want a ceasefire. A ceasefire as soon as possible. We want it now.

“We lost everything,” she said. “We want a ceasefire. A ceasefire as soon as possible. We want it now.”

Media Line staff contributed to this report.