GAZA CITY — When Gaza’s 2 million residents break their dawn-to-dusk fast during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, much of the territory is engulfed by darkness and homes have to rely on generators or batteries for the post-sundown family meals.
Rolling power cuts, a mainstay of life in a decade of Hamas rule in the blockaded Gaza Strip, have never been worse.
Power is only on for four hours at a time, followed by 14 to 18 hours of outage — and the blackouts could grow even longer amid an escalating struggle for dominance between Hamas and its West Bank-based rival, the Palestinian Authority of internationally backed President Mahmoud Abbas.
Abbas, whose government pays Israel for the electricity, has stepped up financial pressure on Hamas in recent weeks by threatening to reduce its funding in hopes of forcing his rivals to cede ground. But in a new twist, Israel’s energy minister said he would block any additional electricity cuts until further review. Yuval Steinitz argued that Israel should not be drawn into an internal Palestinian problem, a decision that also effectively shields Hamas.
Gaza’s residents have adapted to worsening hardships with ingenuity and stoicism.
In some apartment buildings, residents have pooled resources to buy communal generators. Most Gazans buy food daily because they can no longer use refrigerators. Formerly routine activities such as showering or running a washing machine are done at odd hours, when power is on.
Gaza resident Raed Ashour, 31, said he believes the situation is allowed to fester, in part, because people are afraid to speak out. The security forces of the authoritarian Hamas quickly quelled a rare mass protest over the power cuts in January. “Now we are entering the second or third month of four hours of electricity, yet there is no sign of public protest,” said Ashour, a pharmacist. “It’s a political problem.”
Gaza resident Wissam Helo, 35, said his pregnant wife cannot leave their 13th floor apartment when power is out because she cannot climb the stairs to get back home. “We are with the president,” he said, meaning Abbas, when asked whom he backs in the power struggle.
He said he did not want to say more for fear of repercussions.
Gaza hasn’t had full-time electricity in more than a decade, largely because of the international isolation of Hamas. Israel and Egypt, which border the coastal strip, imposed a blockade on the territory after Hamas’ takeover in 2007. Since 2008, Israel and Hamas have fought three cross-border wars.
Since April, Gaza’s power crisis worsened, in part because of Abbas’ new strategy. After years of failed reconciliation efforts, he began cutting back Gaza support payments to pressure Hamas. The group says it will not yield.
Gaza’s sole power plant stopped working in April, after it ran out of fuel that had partially been paid for by Qatar and Turkey, one-time regional backers whose support appears to have cooled off.
Hamas could not afford to buy new fuel, leaving Gaza with 10 power lines from Israel as the main source of electricity.
The Israeli electricity is funded by the Abbas government at a cost of about $11 million a month. The monthly payment is deducted by Israel from customs and tax reimbursements it collects on behalf of the Palestinian Authority every month. — AP
