Gaza's Silent Crisis: The Daily Burden of Chasing Light

Deir el-Balah, Gaza Strip – For Abdel Karim Salman, a 28-year-old father of two, the start of each day is marked by a desperate quest for light. Displaced with his family to a tent in central Gaza, his routine involves carrying two completely drained mobile phones to a nearby charging point, a testament to the profound electricity shortages that plague the besieged territory.

Daily Ritual: A Quest for Illumination

Abdel Karim, a former civil engineer, and his extended family of 30 have been displaced for a year and a half since their home was destroyed in October 2023. At night, the only source of light in their tent comes from the torches of his and his wife's mobile phones, which quickly drain the batteries. "I charge my phone and my wife's phone, and we use them for lighting at night, especially since my children are under five years old and they get scared if they wake up in the dark," he explains.

This daily charging process has become an exhausting burden. Abdel Karim walks 150 to 200 metres twice a day to reach a charging point, paying between two and four shekels ($0.65 to $1.30) for each session. This amounts to 270 to 300 shekels ($86 to $95) monthly, a significant sum for families with no income in Gaza's war-driven economy. He notes that many nights, they are forced to sleep in darkness when phones cannot be recharged.

Olley News Insight: The ongoing conflict in Gaza has brought the territory's fragile infrastructure to a breaking point, exacerbating long-standing issues with electricity access. This "silent suffering" often goes unnoticed amid more overt humanitarian crises, yet profoundly impacts every detail of daily life for displaced families.

Beyond Lighting: The Cascade of Hardship

The impact of power cuts extends far beyond basic lighting. Abdel Karim laments the absence of refrigerators and washing machines, vital for hygiene and food preservation. Baby milk, for instance, cannot be stored for more than a few hours. He recalls a past life where power sockets were readily available, a stark contrast to his current tent existence.

The lack of electricity also profoundly affects children's psychological well-being. Abdel Karim's eldest son, deprived of electronic entertainment, constantly asks for the phone, but even this relies on precious battery charge. This struggle is not unique, as Abdel Karim believes almost all Gaza residents face the same grim reality.

Scarce Solutions: Unaffordable Alternatives

With municipality-supplied electricity absent for two years, temporary alternatives have emerged but remain largely out of reach. Solar-powered lamps, once affordable, have increased tenfold to about 300 shekels ($95) during the war. More comprehensive solar energy systems are even costlier, with panels at $420 each and batteries at $1,200, alongside severe Israeli restrictions on their entry into Gaza.

Private generator-based systems, operating on diesel, offer another alternative but are equally unaffordable for many and suffer from irregular fuel supplies. For Abdel Karim, who lost his job at the war's outset, these sums are insurmountable, leaving him and countless others with few practical options for power.

A Crisis Deepens: Gaza's Non-Functional Grid

Gaza's electricity crisis is a longstanding problem, exacerbated dramatically after October 7, 2023. Even before the war, residents faced daily blackouts due to limited power imports and fuel shortages. Israel's "complete siege" in October 2023 cut all electricity supply and blocked fuel imports, leading to a full electricity blackout by October 11, 2023.

Since then, Gaza's power infrastructure has deteriorated significantly due to fuel scarcity and widespread physical destruction. The territory's power system is now widely considered non-functional, with electricity access fragmented and dependent solely on emergency generator solutions, severely impacting essential services like healthcare, water, and communications.

An Entrepreneurial Response Amidst Despair

Amidst the crisis, Jamal Musbah, a 50-year-old former farmer, found an indirect source of income by repurposing his pre-war solar system into a mobile phone charging station. His two agricultural plots were bulldozed, making the charging station his family's main livelihood.

Initially, Jamal's station could charge 100 to 200 phones daily and offered food refrigeration. However, missile damage destroyed four of his six solar panels, and battery depletion forced him to scale back. Now, with just two panels and one battery, he manages to charge 50 to 60 phones daily, a capacity further impacted by winter weather.

Charging phones for one to two shekels each, Jamal's station serves university students and displaced families who cannot afford other options. Despite generating some income, he acknowledges the pervasive economic hardship and the unsustainable nature of such solutions. "The only real and lasting solution is the official restoration of electricity to the Gaza Strip," Jamal asserts.

Key Takeaways

  • Abdel Karim Salman's daily routine highlights the desperate need for electricity, with mobile phones serving as the primary light source in tents.
  • Charging phones incurs significant daily costs ($2.55-$3.20), totaling over $85 monthly, a major burden for income-less displaced families.
  • Viable alternatives like solar lamps or full solar systems are tenfold more expensive than pre-war prices, further constrained by import restrictions.
  • The lack of electricity impacts every aspect of daily life, from food preservation and hygiene to children's psychological well-being.
  • Gaza's electricity crisis is chronic, dramatically worsened by the October 2023 "complete siege" and subsequent destruction of infrastructure.
  • Jamal Musbah's solar-powered charging station offers a limited, fragile solution amidst widespread despair, struggling with damage and capacity issues.
  • There is a consensus among residents that only the official restoration of electricity can provide a lasting solution to the crisis.