ZURICH (Reuters) – Unemployment in Gaza has risen to nearly 80 percent since Israel's war with Hamas broke out, as the country's economy has almost completely collapsed, the International Labor Organization said on Thursday.
Economic output has fallen by 85% since the conflict with Israel began last year, pushing almost all 2.3 million people into poverty, the United Nations said.
The conflict has caused “unprecedented and widespread damage to the labor market and the wider economy throughout the Palestinian Territory”, the ILO said, referring to Gaza and the West Bank.
In the West Bank, the unemployment rate reached 34.9% between October 2023 and the end of September 2024, and its economy shrank by 21.7% compared to the previous 12 months, the ILO said.
Before the crisis, the unemployment rate in Gaza was 45.3% and 14% in the West Bank, according to the Geneva-based organization.
Gazans either lose their jobs entirely or find informal and irregular work “focused on the provision of essential goods and services,” the ILO said.
Israel launched the offensive after gunmen led by Hamas attacked on October 7, killing about 1,200 people and taking about 250 hostages, according to Israeli figures.
Israel's response campaign has killed more than 42,000 people, according to Gaza health authorities.
Two-thirds of Gaza's pre-war buildings – more than 163,000 buildings – have been damaged or flattened, according to UN satellite data.
Israel says its operations are aimed at eliminating Hamas terrorists hiding in the trenches and among Gaza's civilians.
The crisis has spread to the West Bank, where Israel's restrictions on the movement of people and goods, coupled with extensive trade restrictions and supply disruptions, have had a major impact on the economy, the ILO said.
Israel says its actions in the West Bank were necessary to fight Iranian-backed terrorist groups and to prevent harm to Israeli citizens.
“The impact of the war in the Gaza Strip has been devastating in addition to the loss of lives, dire humanitarian conditions and physical destruction,” said the ILO's regional director for Arab countries, Ruba Jaradat.
“It has drastically changed the social and economic situation in Gaza, and it has also had a negative impact on the West Bank economy and the labor market. The impact will be felt for generations to come.”
