GAZA, (PIC)
Marriage in the Gaza Strip has no longer become just a personal decision or a natural milestone in the youth’s lives, but it has transformed into a complex economic and social equation controlled by the repercussions of the ongoing war and the widespread collapse that affected various sectors.
Between a suffocating housing crisis and an unprecedented rise in the cost of living and home appliances, thousands of young men find themselves unable to achieve the simplest requirements of forming a family, which makes the dream of marriage postponed indefinitely for many.
Housing crisis
At the heart of this crisis, the young man Hamza Al-Bayouk stands before a reality that grows harsher day after day.
After months of his engagement, he no longer aspires to more than a small room that brings him together with his wife, but this simple requirement has become difficult to achieve in light of the sharp housing crisis plaguing the Strip.
Al-Bayouk said, “The problem is no longer the lack of capabilities, but the absence of everything, as no construction materials are available and there are no real options for housing.”
The housing crisis has worsened in an unprecedented way as a result of the destruction of thousands of housing units and preventing the entry of construction materials, which led to a severe suffocation in the real estate market and a record rise in rental prices.
The cost of renting a modest apartment ranges between 1,000 and 1,500 shekels per month, at a time when family incomes have declined significantly or disappeared completely.
The repercussions of the crisis did not stop at the borders of housing, but extended to the furniture and home appliances market, where the prices of used furniture witnessed significant increases.
Al-Bayouk explained that the price of a used bedroom exceeded 10,000 shekels, which prompts many young men to reduce marriage requirements to the minimum possible or postpone it indefinitely.
In an attempt to adapt to these harsh conditions, Al-Bayouk was forced to set up a temporary shelter from plastic and tarpaulins over his family’s house, and he also resorted to buying ready-made supplies at high prices due to the absence of raw materials, including an aluminum sink whose price reached about 1,200 shekels.
The pressures are not limited to housing and home appliances only, but extend to the form of the marriage ceremonies themselves.
The young man Ashraf Abu Issa, who is about to get married, said that he was forced to reduce expenses and abandon many of the traditional aspects associated with social occasions, such as large parties and banquets.
Despite this, it was not possible to dispense with the minimum level of celebration, as Abu Issa held a modest wedding party in one of the wedding halls at a cost of nearly 2,000 shekels, with the aim of providing suitable conditions in light of the power outages and the absence of basic services.
But the painful irony begins after the end of the party, as many couples find themselves facing a fragile living reality, which may reach living in tents or temporary housing that lacks the simplest elements of stability, in a scene that embodies the gap between the joy of the beginning and the cruelty of daily life.
Changes also affected basic elements related to marriage, such as dowries and gold. Abu Issa points out that the value of dowries decreased in some cases to about 1,500 dinars, while the demand for buying gold declined as a result of its high prices, in a clear reflection of the economic and social transformations imposed by the war.
Multi-dimensional economic shock
For his part, the economic expert Khaled Abu Amer confirms that what Gaza is witnessing goes beyond the borders of a traditional housing crisis, to reach the level of a “multi-dimensional economic shock” hitting the society and the market at the same time.
Abu Amer said in a press statement that the paralysis of the construction sector due to preventing the entry of raw materials led to a sharp decline in housing supply against an increasing demand, which created an inflationary environment that was directly reflected on rental prices and the cost of living in general.
He added that the rise in marriage costs reflects the erosion of purchasing power and the absence of income sources, which drives young people to forced options ranging between postponing marriage or accepting unstable living conditions.
Abu Amer warned that the continuation of this situation could leave long-term social effects, including an increase in the marriage age, increasing social and psychological pressures, and a decline in family stability levels, stressing that addressing the crisis requires urgent interventions to reactivate the economy, open reconstruction paths, and provide basic life requirements for the population.
Social and psychological repercussions
For his part, the specialist in sociology Dr. Abdullah Al-Khatib expressed belief that the marriage crisis in the Gaza Strip is no longer related to the economic aspect only, but has become a social and psychological issue that touches the structure of Palestinian society directly.
Al-Khatib confirmed to our reporter that postponing marriage or the couples’ compulsion to live in unstable conditions reflects negatively on the young people’s sense of safety and stability, and increases their levels of anxiety and frustration, especially in light of the absence of a clear horizon for the improvement of living conditions.
He added that the war and the destruction, displacement, and loss of income sources prompted many families to rearrange their priorities, which was reflected in the customs and traditions of marriage, whether in terms of dowries, the size of celebrations, or the requirements of establishing a home.
Al-Khatib warned that the continuation of these conditions for long periods may lead to deep social changes, most notably the rise in rates of delayed marriage and the decline in opportunities for family stability, which requires social and economic support programs targeting the youth category and helping them overcome these challenges.
In light of the continuation of the war and the faltering of reconstruction efforts, marriage in Gaza remains one of the dreams that clash with a harsh economic and living reality, where young people do not only face the challenges of building a family, but they fight a daily battle to secure the minimum requirements of life and stability, at a time when the gap widens between their legitimate aspirations and the conditions imposed by the war.