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Radio Al-Shams · 2026-05-31
Economist Dr. Omar Shaban warned that confining Gaza’s population to only about 30% of the Strip would create an unprecedented humanitarian crisis and make daily life far harsher due to the lack of land for housing and basic services. He said the areas beyond residents’ reach contain most agricultural land, water sources, and industrial zones, threatening food and water security and making it nearly impossible to build schools, hospitals, or public facilities. He also expressed doubt about the feasibility of alternative housing projects in the remaining areas, warning that Gaza could turn into an “overcrowded cell” lacking the basic conditions for life.
Economist Dr. Omar Shaban warned that confining Gaza’s population to only about 30% of the Strip would create an unprecedented humanitarian crisis and make daily life far harsher due to the lack of land for housing and basic services. He said the areas beyond residents’ reach contain most agricultu…
The Israeli army in Gaza - Photo by the army
The Gaza-based economist Dr. Omar Shaban warned of the dangerous repercussions of any plan that would confine the residents of the Gaza Strip to only about 30% of the Strip’s area, considering that such a reality would lead to an unprecedented humanitarian crisis and strip residents of the most basic necessities of life.
In a phone interview during the program “Awwal Khabar” on Radio al-Shams, Shaban explained that the Gaza Strip is one of the most densely populated areas in the world, with more than two million people living in an already limited area. He pointed out that reducing the space available to residents would turn Palestinians’ lives into daily suffering amid the absence of the land needed for urban expansion or the establishment of basic services.
Shaban said that the areas controlled by Israel include the largest share of agricultural land, border areas, water sources, and industrial zones, in addition to the lands that were supposed to constitute the natural extension for any future housing or reconstruction projects.
He added that even before the war, the Strip needed dozens of new schools annually to accommodate natural population growth, explaining that cramming more than two million people into an area not exceeding 30% of the Strip would make it impossible to build schools, hospitals, public facilities, or even new cemeteries.
## The food basket and water sources beyond residents’ reach
Shaban explained that the areas located in the east and north of the Strip constituted the main food basket for Gaza’s residents, where the most productive agricultural lands are concentrated, in addition to water sources and vital infrastructure.
He added that most water wells, desalination plants, and wastewater treatment plants are located in areas that have become beyond the reach of residents, threatening food and water security in the Strip.
He said that the destruction of agricultural areas and taking them out of service would deprive residents of one of the most important sources of food and income, noting that the areas of Beit Hanoun, Beit Lahia, and the eastern areas of Deir al-Balah represented essential pillars of agricultural production in Gaza.
## “The goal is not reorganization but pressure on the population”
Responding to hypotheses suggesting the possibility of establishing new housing projects or alternative cities within the remaining areas of the Strip, Shaban expressed skepticism about the possibility of implementing such scenarios, stressing that previous experience indicates that the border areas were subject to strict restrictions even before the war.
He explained that talk of building new residential neighborhoods in those areas is inconsistent with the existing reality, especially since housing projects previously announced did not witness actual progress on the ground.
## “Gaza may turn into an overcrowded cell”
Shaban pointed out that the continuation of this reality would lead to a deterioration in health, social, and economic conditions, amid the absence of the land needed for public services or economic activities.
He said that the result would be a massive population تجمع lacking the basic requirements of life, adding that Gaza may turn into an “overcrowded cell” in which residents live amid a severe shortage of water, services, job opportunities, and infrastructure.
Reconstruction in Gaza
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