Middle East
Page last updated: January 31, 2024
The Gaza Strip has been under the de facto governing authority of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) since 2007, and has faced years of conflict, poverty, and humanitarian crises. Inhabited since at least the 15th century B.C., the Gaza Strip area has been dominated by many different peoples and empires throughout its history; it was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire in the early 16th century. The Gaza Strip fell to British forces during World War I, becoming a part of the British Mandate of Palestine. Following the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, Egypt administered the newly formed Gaza Strip; Israel captured it in the Six-Day War in 1967. Under a series of agreements known as the Oslo Accords signed between 1993 and 1999, Israel transferred to the newly-created Palestinian Authority (PA) security and civilian responsibility for many Palestinian-populated areas of the Gaza Strip as well as the West Bank.
In 2000, a violent intifada or uprising began in response to perceived Israeli provocations, and in 2001 negotiations to determine the permanent status of the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza Strip stalled. Subsequent attempts to re-start negotiations have not resulted in progress toward determining final status and resolving of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Israel in late 2005 unilaterally withdrew all of its settlers and soldiers and dismantled its military facilities in the Gaza Strip, but it continues to control the Gaza Strip’s land borders, maritime territorial waters, cyberspace, telecommunications, and airspace. In early 2006, Hamas won a majority in the Palestinian Legislative Council election. Fatah, the dominant Palestinian political faction in the West Bank, and Hamas failed to maintain a unity government, leading to violent clashes between their respective supporters and Hamas's violent seizure of all PA military and governmental institutions in the Gaza Strip in June 2007. Since Hamas's takeover, Israel and Egypt have enforced tight restrictions on movement and access of goods and individuals into and out of the territory. Fatah and HAMAS have since negotiated a series of agreements aimed at restoring political unity between the Gaza Strip and the West Bank but have struggled to enact them.
Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip and the Israel Defense Forces periodically exchange projectiles and air strikes, respectively, threatening broader conflict. In May 2021, Hamas launched rockets at Israel, sparking an 11-day conflict that also involved other Gaza-based militant groups. Egypt, Qatar, and the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process negotiated ceasefires, averting a broader conflict. Since 2018, Hamas has also coordinated demonstrations along the Gaza-Israel security fence. Many of these protests have turned violent, resulting in several Israeli soldiers’ deaths and injuries as well as more than 200 Palestinian deaths and thousands of injuries, most of which occurred during weekly March of Return protests from 2018 to the end of 2019. Hamas has also stood by while other militant groups, such as Palestinian Islamic Jihad, fought brief conflicts with Israel, most recently in August 2022 and May 2023.
On 7 October 2023, Hamas militants inside the Gaza Strip launched a combined unguided rocket and ground attack into Israel. The attack began with a barrage of more than 3,000 rockets fired toward Israel from Gaza, and included thousands of terrorists infiltrating Israel by land, sea, and air via paragliders. Militants attacked military bases, clashed with security forces mostly in southern Israel, and simultaneously infiltrated civilian communities. During the attack, terrorists carried out massacres and murdered civilians, including torture, acts of abuse and rape, a massacre at the Supernova music festival near Kibbutz Re'im, as well as kidnapping approximately 240 civilians, including men, women, children, and soldiers. These attacks were followed soon after by Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) air strikes inside Gaza. The following day, Israeli Prime Minister NETANYAHU formally declared war on Gaza. The IDF, on 28 October, launched a large-scale ground assault inside Gaza that is ongoing as of January 2024.
Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Israel
31°25' N, 34°20' E
Middle East
Total: 360 km²
Land: 360 km²
Water: 0 km²
Slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC
Total: 72 km
Border countries (2): Egypt 13 km; Israel 59 km
40 km
See entry for Israel note: effective 3 January 2009, the Gaza maritime area is closed to all maritime traffic and is under blockade imposed by Israeli Navy until further notice
Temperate, mild winters, dry and warm to hot summers
Flat to rolling, sand- and dune-covered coastal plain
Highest point: Abu 'Awdah (Joz Abu 'Awdah) 105 m
Lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m
Arable land, natural gas
(2013) 151 km²; note - includes the West Bank
Population concentrated in major cities, particularly Gaza City in the north
Droughts
Once a strategic strip of land along Mideast-North African trade routes that has experienced an incredibly turbulent history; the town of Gaza itself has been besieged countless times in its history; Israel evacuated its civilian settlements and soldiers from the Gaza Strip in 2005
2,098,389 (2023 est.)
Noun: NA
Adjective: NA
Palestinian Arab
Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by many Palestinians), English (widely understood)
Major-language sample(s):
كتاب Øقائق العالم، المصدر الذي لا يمكن الاستغناء عنه للمعلومات الأساسية (Arabic)
The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.
Muslim 98.0 - 99.0% (predominantly Sunni), Christian <1.0%, other, unaffiliated, unspecified <1.0% (2012 est.)
Note: Israel dismantled its settlements in September 2005; Gaza has had no Jewish population since then
MENA religious affiliation
0-14 years: 39.75% (male 415,804/female 394,236)
15-64 years: 57.34% (male 580,693/female 587,807)
65 years and over: 2.91% (2023 est.) (male 31,671/female 27,533)
2023 population pyramid:
Total dependency ratio: 74.3
Youth dependency ratio: 68.2
Elderly dependency ratio: 6.1
Potential support ratio: 16.5 (2021 est.)
Note: data represent Gaza Strip and the West Bank
Total: 19.2 years (2023 est.)
Male: 18.9 years
Female: 19.5 years
2.07% (2023 est.)
27.5 births/1,000 population (2023 est.)
3 deaths/1,000 population (2023 est.)
-3.8 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2023 est.)
Population concentrated in major cities, particularly Gaza City in the north
Urban population: 77.6% of total population (2023)
Rate of urbanization: 2.85% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Note: data represent Gaza Strip and the West Bank
Total population growth rate v. urban population growth rate, 2000-2030
778,000 Gaza (2023)
At birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 1.15 male(s)/female
Total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2023 est.)
20 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)
Note: data represent Gaza Strip and the West Bank
Total: 16 deaths/1,000 live births (2023 est.)
Male: 17.4 deaths/1,000 live births
Female: 14.6 deaths/1,000 live births
Total population: 74.8 years (2023 est.)
Male: 73 years
Female: 76.8 years
3.38 children born/woman (2023 est.)
1.64 (2023 est.)
57.3% (2019/20)
Note: includes Gaza Strip and West Bank
Improved: urban: 98.9% of population
Rural: 99% of population
Total: 98.9% of population
Unimproved: urban: 1.1% of population
Rural: 1% of population
Total: 1.1% of population (2020 est.)
Note: includes Gaza Strip and the West Bank
NA
2.71 physicians/1,000 population (2020)
1.3 beds/1,000 population (2019)
Improved: urban: 99.9% of population
Rural: 98.6% of population
Total: 99.6% of population
Unimproved: urban: 0.1% of population
Rural: 1.4% of population
Total: 0.4% of population (2020 est.)
Note: note includes Gaza Strip and the West Bank
Note: on 21 March 2022, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a Travel Alert for polio in Asia; the Gaza Strip is currently considered a high risk to travelers for polio; the CDC recommends that before any international travel, anyone unvaccinated, incompletely vaccinated, or with an unknown polio vaccination status should complete the routine polio vaccine series; before travel to any high-risk destination, the CDC recommends that adults who previously completed the full, routine polio vaccine series receive a single, lifetime booster dose of polio vaccine
2.1% (2019/20)
Note: estimate is for Gaza Strip and the West Bank
62.4% (2023 est.)
Note: data includes Gaza and the West Bank
Women married by age 15: 0.7%
Women married by age 18: 13.4% (2020 est.)
Note: includes both the Gaza Strip and the West Bank
5.3% of GDP (2018 est.)
Note: includes Gaza Strip and the West Bank
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 97.5%
Male: 98.8%
Female: 96.2% (2020)
Note: estimates are for Gaza Strip and the West Bank
Total: 13 years
Male: 12 years
Female: 14 years (2021)
Note: data represent Gaza Strip and the West Bank
Soil degradation; desertification; water pollution from chemicals and pesticides; salination of fresh water; improper sewage treatment; water-borne disease; depletion and contamination of underground water resources
Temperate, mild winters, dry and warm to hot summers
Urban population: 77.6% of total population (2023)
Rate of urbanization: 2.85% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Note: data represent Gaza Strip and the West Bank
Total population growth rate v. urban population growth rate, 2000-2030
0% of GDP (2018 est.)
Particulate matter emissions: 30.82 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.)
Carbon dioxide emissions: 3.23 megatons (2016 est.)
Note: data represent combined total from the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.
Municipal solid waste generated annually: 1.387 million tons (2016 est.)
Municipal solid waste recycled annually: 6,935 tons (2013 est.)
Percent of municipal solid waste recycled: 0.5% (2013 est.)
Note: data represent combined total from the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.
Municipal: 181.2 million cubic meters (2017 est.)
Industrial: 32 million cubic meters (2017 est.)
Agricultural: 162 million cubic meters (2017 est.)
Note: data represent combined total from the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.
840 million cubic meters (2020 est.)
Note: data represent combined total from the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.
Conventional long form: none
Conventional short form: Gaza, Gaza Strip
Local long form: none
Local short form: Qita' Ghazzah
Etymology: named for the largest city in the enclave, Gaza, whose settlement can be traced back to at least the 15th century B.C. (as "Ghazzat")
$27.779 billion (2021 est.)
$25.95 billion (2020 est.)
$29.262 billion (2019 est.)
See entry for the West Bank
7.05% (2021 est.)
-11.32% (2020 est.)
1.36% (2019 est.)
Note: excludes the West Bank
$5,600 (2021 est.)
$5,400 (2020 est.)
$6,200 (2019 est.)
See entry for the the West Bank
$2.938 billion (2014 est.)
Note: excludes the West Bank
1.24% (2021 est.)
-0.74% (2020 est.)
1.58% (2019 est.)
Note: excludes the West Bank
Agriculture: 3% (2017 est.)
Industry: 21.1% (2017 est.)
Services: 75% (2017 est.)
Note: data exclude the West Bank
Comparison rankings: services 47; industry 138; agriculture 150
Household consumption: 88.6% (2017 est.)
Government consumption: 26.3% (2017 est.)
Investment in fixed capital: 22.4% (2017 est.)
Investment in inventories: 0% (2017 est.)
Exports of goods and services: 18.6% (2017 est.)
Imports of goods and services: -55.6% (2017 est.)
Note: data exclude the West Bank
Tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, poultry, milk, potatoes, sheep milk, eggplants, gourds
Textiles, food processing, furniture
6.22% (2021 est.)
Note: see entry for the West Bank
1.249 million (2021 est.)
Note: excludes the West Bank
24.9% (2021 est.)
25.89% (2020 est.)
25.34% (2019 est.)
Note: data exclude the West Bank
Total: 39.6% (2021 est.)
Male: 33.7%
Female: 69%
Note: includes the West Bank
30% (2011 est.)
Note: data exclude the West Bank
33.7 (2016 est.)
Revenues: $3.803 billion (2020 est.)
Expenditures: $5.002 billion (2020 est.)
See entry for the West Bank
18.78% (of GDP) (2018 est.)
Calendar year
-$1.486 billion (2021 est.)
-$1.903 billion (2020 est.)
-$1.779 billion (2019 est.)
Note: excludes the West Bank
$3.18 billion (2021 est.)
$2.385 billion (2020 est.)
$2.659 billion (2019 est.)
Building stone, scrap iron, plastic lids, furniture, seating, dates, olive oil (2021)
Note: data includes both Gaza Strip and West Bank export commodities
$10.245 billion (2021 est.)
$8.065 billion (2020 est.)
$9.161 billion (2019 est.)
See entry for the West Bank
Food, consumer goods, fuel
$872.541 million (31 December 2021 est.)
$697.075 million (31 December 2020 est.)
$658.352 million (31 December 2019 est.)
See entry for the West Bank
See entry for the West Bank
Electrification - total population: 100% (2021)
Note: data for Gaza Strip and West Bank combined
Installed generating capacity: 215,000 kW (2020 est.) Data represented includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
Consumption: 5,702,816,000 kWh (2019 est.) Data represented includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
Exports: 0 kWh (2019 est.) Data represented includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
Imports: 5.9 billion kWh (2019 est.) Data represented includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
Transmission/distribution losses: 847 million kWh (2019 est.) Data represented includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
Comparison rankings: installed generating capacity 168; transmission/distribution losses 119; imports 37; exports 157; consumption 122
Fossil fuels: 100% of total installed capacity (2020 est.) Data represented includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
Nuclear: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.) Data represented includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
Solar: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.) Data represented includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
Wind: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.) Data represented includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
Hydroelectricity: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.) Data represented includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
Tide and wave: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.) Data represented includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
Geothermal: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.) Data represented includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
Biomass and waste: 0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.) Data represented includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
Total petroleum production: 0 bbl/day (2021 est.) Data represented includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
Refined petroleum consumption: 24,600 bbl/day (2019 est.) Data represented includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
Crude oil and lease condensate exports: 0 bbl/day (2018 est.) Data represented includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
Crude oil and lease condensate imports: 0 bbl/day (2018 est.) Data represented includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
Crude oil estimated reserves: 0 barrels (2021 est.) Data represented includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
Production: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
Consumption: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
Exports: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
Imports: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
Proven reserves: 0 cubic meters (2021 est.)
3.341 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.) Data represented includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
From coal and metallurgical coke: 0 metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.) Data includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
From petroleum and other liquids: 3.341 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.) Data includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
From consumed natural gas: 0 metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.) Data includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
13.604 million Btu/person (2019 est.) Data represented includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
Total subscriptions: 457,706 (2022 est.)
Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 9 (2021 est.)
Note: data includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank
Total subscriptions: 4,052,966 (2021 est.)
Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 78 (2021 est.)
Includes the West Bank
General assessment:
Israel, which controls Palestinian frequencies and telecom infrastructure, limits mobile internet speeds in the Palestinian territories to levels that are significantly lower than in Israel and Jewish West Bank settlements; the World Bank urged Israel to let Palestinian cellular companies set up more advanced networks, and to ease restrictions on the import of equipment needed to build and operate them; Israel is rolling out fifth generation technology for its citizens, while the West Bank operates on 3G and Gaza, 2G; Israeli mobile operators don’t officially service Palestinian areas, but many Palestinians use the faster Israeli networks with SIM cards; the Times of Israel reported in November that Israel tentatively agreed to let Palestinian operators launch 4G services
(2022)
Domestic: fixed-line 9 per 100 and mobile-cellular 28 per 100 (includes West Bank) (2021)
International: country code 970 or 972 (2018)
1 TV station and about 10 radio stations; satellite TV accessible
.ps; note \- IANA has designated .ps for the Gaza Strip, same as the West Bank
Total: 3,602,452 (2020 est.)
Percent of population: 75% (2020 est.)
Note: includes the West Bank
Total: 376,911 (2020 est.)
Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 7 (2020 est.)
Note: includes the West Bank
1 (2021)
1
Note: non-operational
1 (2021)
Note: see entry for the West Bank
Major seaport(s): Gaza
HAMAS maintains security forces inside Gaza in addition to its military wing, the 'Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades; the military wing ostensibly reports to the HAMAS Political Bureau but operates with considerable autonomy; there are several other militant groups operating in the Gaza Strip, most notably the Al-Quds Brigades of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, which are usually but not always beholden to HAMAS's authority (2024)
Not available
The military wing of HAMAS has an estimated 20-25,000 fighters (2023)
The military wing is armed with light weapons, including an inventory of rocket, anti-tank, anti-aircraft, indirect fire (typically mortars), and armed UAV capabilities; HAMAS acquires its weapons through smuggling or local construction and receives significant military support from Iran (2024)
Since seizing control of the Gaza Strip in 2007, HAMAS has had repeated clashes with Israel, including armed conflicts in 2008-2009, 2012, 2014, 2021, and 2023; Palestine Islamic Jihad (PIJ) also operates in the Gaza Strip and has cooperated with HAMAS; see Appendix T for more details on HAMAS and PIJ (2023)
Terrorist group(s): Army of Islam; Abdallah Azzam Brigades; al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade; HAMAS; Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps/Qods Force; Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham - Sinai Province (ISIS-SP); Mujahidin Shura Council in the Environs of Jerusalem; Palestine Islamic Jihad (PIJ); Palestine Liberation Front; Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP); PFLP-General Command
Note: details about the history, aims, leadership, organization, areas of operation, tactics, targets, weapons, size, and sources of support of the group(s) appear(s) in Appendix-T
Borders with both Egypt and Israel are sealed with barriers, fences, and walls; Israel completed an underground anti-tunnel barrier in 2021
Refugees (country of origin): 1.6 million (Palestinian refugees) (2022)
IDPs: 1.7 million (as of 26 January 2024, since HAMAS's attack on Israel on 7 October 2023)
1.6 million (includes persons displaced within the Gaza Strip due to the intensification of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict between June 2014 and 7 October 2023 and other Palestinian IDPs in the Gaza Strip and West Bank who fled as long ago as 1967, although confirmed cumulative data do not go back beyond 2006) (2022)