Gaza residents lose faith in politics amid daily survival struggles

Life in Gaza remains a daily battle for survival, even with a ceasefire in place. Residents grapple with severe shortages of basic necessities, including food, clean water, electricity, and essential medical care. Ambulance worker Maha Wafi paints a grim picture of the ongoing hardship faced by the population.

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We barely have time to take a short break to drink a cup of coffee.

Wafi, who works in southern Gaza, notes that while some items like eggs are occasionally available, they are prohibitively expensive. She describes people queuing for hours to buy bread at inflated prices, while cooking gas is a distant dream and electricity is almost non-existent. The difficult living conditions, exacerbated by summer heat, have also led to an increase in pests like scorpions and snakes.

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If I say that people in Gaza hardly care about politics anymore, you might be surprised. But we have lost faith in everything we hear about peace, reconstruction, and support.

The situation has fueled an alarming rise in diseases. Wafi reports a significant increase in scabies and other skin infections, as well as widespread chickenpox. People living in close proximity, combined with the heat and poor living conditions, contribute to the rapid spread of illness. Individuals with chronic conditions like high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, and cancer are particularly vulnerable, struggling to access necessary medications, with even basic painkillers like paracetamol being scarce.

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We see a sharp increase in scabies and other skin diseases. At the same time, chickenpox has spread among many Gaza residents.

The capacity of the healthcare system is severely strained. Wafi highlights critical shortages of fundamental medical supplies such as bandages and cannulas, with much of the available equipment past its expiration date. Furthermore, the ambulances themselves are in poor condition after months of heavy use, and the damaged road infrastructure makes navigating Gaza to reach patients and provide aid increasingly challenging. "We barely have time to take a short break to drink a cup of coffee," Wafi stated, underscoring the relentless demands on emergency responders.

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They have very little access to their medications. Even ordinary painkillers like paracetamol are missing.