GAZA, (PIC)
The bread loaf crisis has returned to the forefront once again in the Gaza Strip, to impose a harsh daily reality on the residents, who have been lining up since the dawn hours in front of bakeries and points of sale in a scene that has become repeated daily, in light of a sharp shortage of flour and fuel and strict restrictions on the entry of supplies through the crossings.
Long queues and bread that is not enough for everyone
In various areas of the Strip, citizens stand in long queues waiting to obtain a bundle of bread, amidst a state of anxiety and tension with limited quantities.
One of the citizens lining up at a point designated for selling bread subsidized by the World Food Program (WFP) north of Al-Nuseirat camp says, “I leave immediately after the dawn prayer to reserve a turn in the hope of obtaining one bundle whose weight does not exceed 2 kilograms, and even then I may return to my house without bread.”
Um Luay, who is a mother of four orphaned children, adds to the PIC correspondent, “Our lives have become linked to bread, if we are a little late we lose our turn, and if we arrive late we do not find bread at all.”
The complaints of citizens were not limited to the shortage of supplies, but extended to the policies of some international institutions, headed by the WFP, as many see that the reduction of support contributed to the aggravation of the crisis.
The father Abu Khalid, 35 years old, says, “Some time ago there was clearer support for bread, today the quantities are less, the organization is weaker and international organizations abandoned their role in covering the needs of the people who suffer from the bitterness of poverty and displacement.”
Field testimonies indicate that some points of sale have been forced to return to imposing quantity limits, so that one bundle is sold per person, in an attempt to distribute the available bread to the largest possible number of residents, while quantities run out quickly with the increase in demand.
Why did the crisis return?
The roots of the crisis go back to the decline in the quantities of flour and fuel entering the Strip, as a result of the Israeli restrictions imposed on the crossings, which led to a significant reduction in bakery production.
According to local data and media reports, the daily production of bread declined from about 300 tons to 200 tons only, as a result of reducing flour and diesel supplies to bakeries.
Official estimates indicate that what enters the Gaza Strip does not meet the minimum of actual needs, in light of continuous restrictions on the flow of trucks, which exacerbates the basic food crisis.
In addition to that, the policies of some international institutions, headed by the WFP, played an additional role in complicating the crisis, as the program’s reduction of subsidized flour and diesel quantities for bakeries by a rate reaching 30% led to a decrease in production and an increase in pressure on the market.
It is no longer a secret that the program is heading towards reducing the subsidized bread system and gradually shifting towards the commercial system, which increases the burdens on citizens in light of the deterioration of purchasing power.
The previous reasons combined made the markets witness unprecedented increases in the prices of bread and flour, as the price of a bundle of bread rose from the subsidized price, 3 shekels, to between 7 and 15 shekels in the market, while the price of a bag of flour, 25 kg, jumped from about 20–25 shekels, to 70–100 shekels.
This sharp rise made bread, which is the basic food for most families, a daily burden that exceeds the ability of many.
With the aggravation of the crisis, the black market phenomenon returned, where limited quantities are sold at double prices, benefiting from the supply and demand gap.
Experts confirm that the decrease in production by a rate reaching 30% against high demand led to a clear imbalance in the market, which contributed to price fluctuations and the absence of stability.
Continuous warnings and a constant daily battle
Specialists warn that the continued shortage of flour and fuel, along with the restrictions imposed on the crossings, may push the conditions towards more deterioration, especially with the dependence of a wide segment of the residents on bread as a daily basic food.
At the same time, international estimates indicate that hundreds of thousands in Gaza face acute levels of food insecurity, in light of the decline in supplies and the continuation of the crisis.
It seems that the destiny of the Palestinian in the Gaza Strip is to remain a prisoner in a daily battle in order to obtain bread, which reflects the depth of the humanitarian crisis linked to restricting supplies and supply policies, at a time when the need for urgent intervention to ensure the flow of flour and the stability of bakery work is increasing.
In light of this reality, the “bread loaf” remains the most prominent indicator of the standard of living in the Strip, and a daily title for suffering that is renewed with every morning.