MAHMOUD Radwan sits among the ruins of his destroyed home, contemplating an uncertain future amidst a labour crisis unlike any he has seen before, certainly the worst in decades. Before the outbreak of Israel’s genocidal war on October 7th, 2023, Radwan, 45, worked in the construction sector – a vital industry in Gaza. He has since lost his only source of income.
A father of six, two of whom are university students, Radwan describes Gaza’s labour market as bleak and virtually nonexistent: ‘There is no work, and the war has imposed a high cost of living. When we do find a job, the wages barely cover food and drink for the family.’
Until the ceasefire was announced on January 19, Radwan, like hundreds of others, turned to buying and selling food supplies – mainly canned goods provided by international aid organisations. These were often surplus items that families sold to meet other needs.
However, the situation dramatically deteriorated when the Israeli occupation reneged on its three-phase agreement on March 2 and resumed its genocidal war on March 18.
‘With the war halted for 40 days, we had a glimmer of hope,’ Radwan says. ‘I did some repair work on homes partially restored for living, but things have gone back to worse than before the ceasefire. Today, we can’t buy anything for our families – not because there’s nothing to buy, but because we have no money. And those who do have money can’t pay wages due to the financial blockade and lack of cash liquidity.’
According to data from the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, unemployment in the Gaza Strip reached around 68% during the fourth quarter of 2024, up from 45% in the third quarter of 2023.
In a press release issued on the eve of Labour Day on May 1st, the Bureau noted that labour force participation dropped to around 30%, down from 40% in the third quarter of 2023, prior to October 7th.
The Labour Force Survey revealed that young people (aged 15-29) were particularly affected, with about 74% now outside education, training and employment.
The Bureau also noted that the genocidal war’s impact extended to the West Bank, though to a lesser extent. It confirmed that the Israeli aggression on Gaza triggered widespread consequences in the West Bank.
These include intensified restrictions across West Bank governorates, fragmented internal connectivity, and a ban on workers entering Israeli territory, effectively paralysing the economy.
The number of unemployed people in the West Bank rose to 313,000 in 2024, compared to around 183,000 in 2023.
The ongoing Israeli genocidal war in Gaza has brought local industrial production to a halt, following the massive destruction and the levelling of hundreds of facilities and factories that had employed more than 250,000 workers.
Ziyad Al-Agha, owner of a factory in Khan Younis specialising in agricultural and plastic piping, says his factory – like thousands of others – suffered immense damage, paralysing the city’s industrial activity, which had not fully recovered from previous wars.
His factory used to produce 5,000 metres of plastic daily. He estimates his losses at around half a million dollars, covering direct damage to storage areas, goods, raw materials and machinery.
Industry in Gaza is considered the backbone of its economy, given the right conditions. In 2019, Gaza had 1,247 operating factories employing about 16,360 people, with a production capacity of 32%. By 2020, the number rose to 1,349 factories but with fewer employees (14,770), and production capacity plunged to 14.5%.
In 2021, the number declined again to 1,212 factories, employing roughly 18,295 people, with a production rate of 22%.
The Palestinian Investment Promotion and Industrial Cities Authority estimated in December 2023 that dozens of factories in Gaza’s industrial city were either partially or completely destroyed. The Karni Industrial Zone includes 72 factories across various sectors, such as textiles, food and beverage manufacturing, plastics, woodwork, pharmaceuticals, and detergents, in addition to local and international companies.
Since October 7th, 2023, Israel has waged a genocidal war on the Gaza Strip, resulting in over 170,000 martyrs and wounded, 10,000 missing (most of them women and children), and massive destruction of infrastructure.
Workers in the West have also been going through harder times, with the capitalist class slashing jobs and wages, and leaving millions of young people without work and without a future, except to fight the ruling class’s wars in different parts of the planet.
With capitalism visibly destroying itself, and plutocrats like Trump declaring that they intend to buy huge states such as Canada, there is only one way forward.
This is to build revolutionary leaderships in all of the major and minor capitalist states to organise and lead the victory of the worldwide socialist revolution, to consign capitalism to its rightful place, that is the dustbin of history!
There is not a moment to lose in the building of sections of the International Committee of the Fourth International in every country to lead the worldwide socialist revolution!
