Scarcity of currency adds to misery of war and hunger in Gaza

Residents forced to buy banknotes at high commission on the black market as shops refuse digital payments

A market in Khan Younis on the eve of Eid Al Adha, last week. A shortage of currency is making it difficult to buy essentials. AP

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A shortage of currency in Gaza is pushing thousands of families deeper into poverty, as retailers increasingly demand payment in cash and residents are forced to pay high fees to black market operators to convert funds in online accounts into banknotes.

Bank branches in the territory are no longer functioning after more than 20 months of war between Hamas and Israel military that has devastated the Palestinian territory and displaced most of its population.

Essential goods such as food and medicine are scarce after nearly two months of an Israeli blockade on humanitarian aid, pushing prices beyond the reach of most residents even when they are available.

“For the past two months, cash has all but disappeared,” Mohammed Al Haddad, 39, a resident of Gaza city, told The National. “If I want to get 1,000 shekels ($287) in cash, I have to transfer 1,800 shekels. That’s nearly half my money gone before I even buy food.”

Mr Al Haddad, as a government employee, still receives a salary from the Palestinian Authority in the occupied West Bank, even though Hamas has run Gaza since it seized control of the territory in 2007.

Mr Al Haddad is paid through online bank transfer, but cannot pay for goods digitally because banks in Gaza suspended a widely used payment app after several hacking attempts. In any case, most shops no longer accept such payments.

He believes the aid blockade and shortage of currency – the Israeli shekel is used in both Gaza and West Bank – is part of Israel’s war strategy. “It’s as if the occupation wants to create a new crisis, an economic collapse driven by cash shortages and rising hunger,” he said.

Murid Al Mabhouh, 30, who was displaced from his home in Jabalia Camp to Gaza city, said the situation was “suffocating”.

“We’re under siege, under bombardment, living through famine, and we have to pay 40 per cent just to withdraw the little money we have.”

Mr Al Mabhouh said people had no choice but to pay the high commissions charged by black market currency traders. “There are no functioning banks, no official oversight, and the authorities are silent. It’s not just exploitation, it’s injustice on top of injustice,” he said.

“The money we’re trying to access is for food, medicine, and paying off debts. Now we lose nearly half of it to commission traders getting rich off our suffering.”

Mr Al Haddad said videos posted on social media showed that traders were able to import some goods in recent days, but “it’s all non-essential – instant noodles, snacks, breadcrumbs”.

“And everything is cash only, at outrageous prices,” he said.

Amid the outcry, Gaza’s Chamber of Commerce has accused some traders in Gaza of working with suspicious actors to obtain Israeli permits to import non-essential goods.

“These permits are being sold for hundreds of thousands of shekels for a single truckload of items that people don’t even need,” said Aed Abu Ramadan, director of the Chambers of Commerce, Industry, and Agriculture in Gaza, told The National. “This is unacceptable. It violates both commercial and national ethics.”

He said that such practices are draining the last of the population’s cash, pushing families to the brink while enriching a handful of traders. “We’ve urged merchants not to engage in these deals. They drive prices up, increase suffering, destabilise the market, and destroy any hope for fair competition.”

Mr Abu Ramadan called for immediate oversight by Gaza's authorities and co-operation with official agencies to prevent further economic manipulation. “People are already crushed. We must not let profiteering deepen this humanitarian catastrophe.”

With inflation spiralling, cash inaccessible, and markets flooded with overpriced, non-essential items, Gaza’s families are left with shrinking options. As financial lifelines disappear, aid dependency increases, and with it, fears of long-term economic and political manipulation.

“This isn’t just about money,” Mr Al Haddad said. “It’s about dignity. About whether we’ll ever live normal lives again, or just survive, one overpriced bag of rice at a time.”