For many people in Gaza, this year’s Ramadan, which goes through March 29, is different — because they are observing the holy month without the loved ones they lost in the war between Israel and Hamas.
Hundreds of Palestinians joined together in Rafah earlier this week for the iftar meal to break their fast during the holy month.
But the city is in ruins, a stark reminder that it was a battlefield only weeks ago, and food was scarce.
Now, there’s uncertainty about whether these communal meals will continue.
After about a year and a half of war, people in Gaza depend on humanitarian aid to survive. But last Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the delivery of aid into the strip to be stopped.
“Israel has decided to stop letting goods and supplies into Gaza,” he said in a video, “something that we’ve done for the past 42 days. We’ve done that because Hamas steals the supplies and prevents the people of Gaza from getting it. It uses these supplies to finance its terror machine, which is aimed directly at Israel and at our civilians.”
The decision came after President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff proposed a new ceasefire plan that would extend the temporary pause in fighting while negotiations for the next phase continues. It requires Hamas to release half of the remaining hostages in Gaza immediately. Hamas rejected the plan, saying that it lacked a commitment from Israel to end the war and fully withdraw from Gaza.
In response, Israel blocked all humanitarian aid going into Gaza.
Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for the UN Secretary General, responded to a question about Netanyahu’s claim that Hamas “steals” the aid at a press conference this week.
“None of that has been reported back here by our colleagues on the ground,” he said. “What we have seen since the ceasefire is a much freer and more direct flow of aid.”
Meanwhile, the impact of the blockade is already being felt on the ground in Gaza.
“Meat prices have gone up so much,” said 48-year-old Osama al-Malahi, standing in front of leveled buildings in downtown Gaza city. “Just in the first 48 hours after the announcement, the price of a bag of flour doubled.”
Osama al-Malahi, 48, standing in front of leveled buildings in downtown Gaza city, said that stopping aid from coming into the region has already had an impact on the 2 million people who rely on outside assistance.Mohamed El Saife/The World
“Stopping aid from coming in,” Malahi continued, “has made life very difficult for the 2 million people here.”
Twenty-eight-year old Mohammed al-Harazin, who lives in northern Gaza, said people are afraid that the situation could worsen again.
“People are hoping and praying that things don’t return to where they were before the ceasefire,” he said.
Twenty-eight-year old Mohammed al-Harazin, who lives in northern Gaza, said people are afraid that the situation could worsen again.Mohamed El Saife/The World
“Most people here have been out of work and without an income for more than a year-and-a-half due to the fighting,” he added. “We have no choice but to rely on outside help.”
Conditions in Gaza did improve since the ceasefire in January, said Bob Kitchen, vice president of emergencies for the International Rescue Committee, or IRC.
The IRC as well as others were able to send in medical supplies and ready-to-eat food to combat malnutrition, along with tents.
But there is so much more that needs to be done, Kitchen said. Gaza needs more medical supplies and fuel to operate water desalination plants and so much more.
“It’s a race against time in so many different ways. We’ve got 2 million people who are now running out of food and clean water, and we’ve got the aid that they so desperately need that is going to go off and spoil unless we get it to them in the coming weeks,” he said.
Israeli officials have threatened to cut water and electricity to Gaza if Hamas does not release the hostages.
“We are not ruling out” cutting off water and electricity to Gaza in the coming days, Omer Dostri, a spokesperson for Netanyahu, told Radio Galei on Tuesday.
The Israeli military’s new chief of Staff, Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, said the IDF is prepared to return to fighting in Gaza.
H.A. Hellyer, senior associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute For Defense and Security Studies in London, said humanitarian aid should not be used as a bargaining chip in negotiations.
“Israel is obliged to provide for the welfare of the people of Gaza as the occupying power,” he explained.
Even so, Israel is not providing the aid. It’s the international community.
“[Blocking it] is in contravention of the Geneva Conventions [and] against international law.”
Even if some of the aid is taken by Hamas, that doesn’t absolve Israel of its obligations, according to Tom Dannenbaum, associate professor of international law at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy.
“A civilian population doesn’t lose its civilian character in virtue of the presence of combatants within it,” he said. “To deny sustenance to the population as a whole is to collectively punish that population for the actions of the combatants.”
Israeli officials say that there is enough aid in Gaza to cover the needs of people for the time being. But the United Nations reports that more than 3,000 children have been diagnosed with acute malnutrition since January of this year.
It said blocking aid to Gaza can worsen the situation.
The ceasefire in Gaza has been a moment of respite for residents of Gaza like Fatima al-Absi. She said this Ramadan is like no other.
“I lost the most important thing, which is my husband and my son-in-law.”
They were killed in the war.
She has now returned to her destroyed home and is trying to make it livable again.
“We don’t want war,” she said. “We want peace and security. And for all countries to stand with us.”
Trump issued a “last warning” to Hamas this week in a post on social media to release the remaining hostages.
To the people of Gaza, he wrote: “A beautiful future awaits, but not if you hold hostages. If you do, you are dead! Make a smart decision. Release the hostages now, or there will be hell to pay later!”
The White House confirmed this week that the US is negotiating directly with Hamas, a complete reversal of its past policy.