Shafaqna English- Israel has sought to turn cash shortage into one of the harshest tools of collective punishment against the people of Gaza amidst the ongoing genocide.
“For the past two months, I’ve been struggling immensely to obtain money to provide for my family’s basic needs and secure the essentials for living, due to the severe cash shortage in the markets,” said Bilal Ibrahim to the Palestinian Information Center (PIC). His complaint highlights just a small part of the “cash shortage crisis” that Israel has sought to turn into one of the harshest tools of collective punishment against the people of Gaza amidst the ongoing genocide.
Ibrahim confirms that “the economic conditions have become extremely dire for most Palestinian families due to the cash shortage and the difficulty in accessing money, with high fees imposed by money changers.” He notes that at the beginning of the war on Gaza, the money changers were charging a fee of 1-2% at worst, but this percentage gradually increased, reaching 20% by the end of April this year.
Cash shortage a tool for destroying livelihoods in Gaza
Since the beginning of its aggression on Gaza on October 8, 2023, the Israeli occupation forces have sought to destroy all aspects of life. High-level political statements have dehumanized the residents of Gaza. As part of their attempt to exterminate the population or force them to leave, they have employed various means, policies, and procedures to undermine the residents’ ability to survive.
The Al Mezan Center confirms in a recent report that this crisis has become one of the tools used by Israel to cripple the banks’ ability to provide financial services to the public. This is part of the genocide, with the occupation authorities preventing the necessary cash, especially the Israeli shekel (the main currency in the occupied Palestinian territories), from reaching the banks. As a result, they have created an unprecedented cash shortage crisis in Gaza.
This cash shortage directly impacts the population, exacerbating daily challenges and preventing them from withdrawing their money from banks, whether it’s salaries, savings, or funds sent by relatives and friends abroad.
Sources: Palestinian Information Center