2023 Edition

Background

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, and in 2001 negotiations to determine the permanent status of the West Bank and Gaza Strip stalled. Subsequent attempts to re-start negotiations have not resulted in progress toward determining final status 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 and maritime borders 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 reached 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 have negotiated ceasefires to avert 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.On 7 October 2023, Hamas militants inside the Gaza Strip launched a combined unguided rocket and ground attack inside southern Israel, 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. 

Area

land

360 sq km

total

360 sq km

water

0 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC

Climate

temperate, mild winters, dry and warm to hot summers

Coastline

40 km

Elevation

highest point

Abu 'Awdah (Joz Abu 'Awdah) 105 m

lowest point

Mediterranean Sea 0 m

Geographic coordinates

31 25 N, 34 20 E

Geography - note

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

Irrigated land

(2013) 151 sq km; note - includes the West Bank

Land boundaries

border countries

Egypt 13 km; Israel 59 km

total

72 km

Location

Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Israel

Map references

Middle East

Maritime claims

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

Natural hazards

droughts

Natural resources

arable land, natural gas

Population distribution

population concentrated in major cities, particularly Gaza City in the north

Terrain

flat to rolling, sand- and dune-covered coastal plain

Age structure

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)

Birth rate

27.5 births/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Child marriage

note

note: includes both the Gaza Strip and the West Bank

women married by age 15

0.7%

women married by age 18

13.4% (2020 est.)

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

2.1% (2019/20)

note

note: estimate is for Gaza Strip and the West Bank

Contraceptive prevalence rate

57.3% (2019/20)

note

note:  includes Gaza Strip and West Bank

Current health expenditure

NA

Currently married women (ages 15-49)

62.4% (2023 est.)

note

note: data includes Gaza and the West Bank

Death rate

3 deaths/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Dependency ratios

elderly dependency ratio

6.1

note

note: data represent Gaza Strip and the West Bank

potential support ratio

16.5 (2021 est.)

total dependency ratio

74.3

youth dependency ratio

68.2

Drinking water source

improved: rural

rural: 99% of population

improved: total

total: 98.9% of population

improved: urban

urban: 98.9% of population

note

note: includes Gaza Strip and the West Bank

unimproved: rural

rural: 1% of population

unimproved: total

total: 1.1% of population (2020 est.)

unimproved: urban

urban: 1.1% of population

Education expenditures

5.3% of GDP (2018 est.)

note

note: includes Gaza Strip and the West Bank

Ethnic groups

Palestinian Arab

Gross reproduction rate

1.64 (2023 est.)

Hospital bed density

1.3 beds/1,000 population (2019)

Infant mortality rate

female

14.6 deaths/1,000 live births

male

17.4 deaths/1,000 live births

total

16 deaths/1,000 live births (2023 est.)

Languages

Languages

Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by many Palestinians), English (widely understood)

major-language sample(s)

كتاب حقائق العالم، المصدر الذي لا يمكن الاستغناء عنه للمعلومات الأساسية (Arabic)The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.

Life expectancy at birth

female

76.8 years

male

73 years

total population

74.8 years (2023 est.)

Literacy

definition

age 15 and over can read and write

female

96.2% (2020)

male

98.8%

note

note: estimates are for Gaza Strip and the West Bank

total population

97.5%

Major infectious diseases

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

Major urban areas - population

778,000 Gaza (2023)

Maternal mortality ratio

20 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)

note

note: data represent Gaza Strip and the West Bank

Median age

female

19.5 years

male

18.9 years

total

19.2 years (2023 est.)

Nationality

adjective

NA

noun

NA

Net migration rate

-3.8 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2023 est.)

Physicians density

2.71 physicians/1,000 population (2020)

Population

2,098,389 (2023 est.)

Population distribution

population concentrated in major cities, particularly Gaza City in the north

Population growth rate

2.07% (2023 est.)

Religions

Muslim 98.0 - 99.0% (predominantly Sunni), Christian <1.0%, other, unaffiliated, unspecified <1.0% (2012 est.)

note

note:  Israel dismantled its settlements in September 2005; Gaza has had no Jewish population since then

Sanitation facility access

improved: rural

rural: 98.6% of population

improved: total

total: 99.6% of population

improved: urban

urban: 99.9% of population

note

note: note includes Gaza Strip and the West Bank

unimproved: rural

rural: 1.4% of population

unimproved: total

total: 0.4% of population (2020 est.)

unimproved: urban

urban: 0.1% of population

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)

female

14 years (2021)

male

12 years

note

note: data represent Gaza Strip and the West Bank

total

13 years

Sex ratio

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

at birth

1.06 male(s)/female

total population

1.03 male(s)/female (2023 est.)

Total fertility rate

3.38 children born/woman (2023 est.)

Urbanization

note

note: data represent Gaza Strip and the West Bank

rate of urbanization

2.85% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

urban population

77.6% of total population (2023)

Country name

conventional long form

none

conventional short form

Gaza Strip

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")

local long form

none

local short form

Qita' Ghazzah

Agricultural products

tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, poultry, milk, potatoes, sheep milk, eggplants, gourds

Budget

expenditures

$5.002 billion (2020 est.)

note

see entry for the West Bank

revenues

$3.803 billion (2020 est.)

Current account balance

Current account balance 2019

-$1.779 billion (2019 est.)

Current account balance 2020

-$1.903 billion (2020 est.)

Current account balance 2021

-$1.486 billion (2021 est.)

note

note: excludes the West Bank

Debt - external

see entry for the West Bank

Exchange rates

see entry for the West Bank

Exports

Exports 2019

$2.659 billion (2019 est.)

Exports 2020

$2.385 billion (2020 est.)

Exports 2021

$3.18 billion (2021 est.)

Exports - commodities

building stone, scrap iron, plastic lids, furniture, seating, dates, olive oil (2021)

note

note: data includes both Gaza Strip and West Bank export commodities

Fiscal year

calendar year

GDP - composition, by end use

exports of goods and services

18.6% (2017 est.)

government consumption

26.3% (2017 est.)

household consumption

88.6% (2017 est.)

imports of goods and services

-55.6% (2017 est.)

investment in fixed capital

22.4% (2017 est.)

investment in inventories

0% (2017 est.)

note

note: data exclude the West Bank

GDP - composition, by sector of origin

agriculture

3% (2017 est.)

industry

21.1% (2017 est.)

note

note: data exclude the West Bank

services

75% (2017 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate)

$2.938 billion (2014 est.)

note

note: excludes the West Bank

Gini Index coefficient - distribution of family income

Gini Index coefficient - distribution of family income 2016

33.7 (2016 est.)

Imports

Imports 2019

$9.161 billion (2019 est.)

Imports 2020

$8.065 billion (2020 est.)

Imports 2021

$10.245 billion (2021 est.)

note

see entry for the West Bank

Imports - commodities

food, consumer goods, fuel

Industrial production growth rate

6.22% (2021 est.)

note

note: see entry for the West Bank

Industries

textiles, food processing, furniture

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2019

1.58% (2019 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2020

-0.74% (2020 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2021

1.24% (2021 est.)

note

note: excludes the West Bank

Labor force

1.249 million (2021 est.)

note

note: excludes the West Bank

Population below poverty line

30% (2011 est.)

note

note: data exclude the West Bank

Real GDP (purchasing power parity)

note

see entry for the West Bank

Real GDP (purchasing power parity) 2019

$29.262 billion (2019 est.)

Real GDP (purchasing power parity) 2020

$25.95 billion (2020 est.)

Real GDP (purchasing power parity) 2021

$27.779 billion (2021 est.)

Real GDP growth rate

note

note: excludes the West Bank

Real GDP growth rate 2019

1.36% (2019 est.)

Real GDP growth rate 2020

-11.32% (2020 est.)

Real GDP growth rate 2021

7.05% (2021 est.)

Real GDP per capita

note

see entry for the the West Bank

Real GDP per capita 2019

$6,200 (2019 est.)

Real GDP per capita 2020

$5,400 (2020 est.)

Real GDP per capita 2021

$5,600 (2021 est.)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold 31 December 2019

$658.352 million (31 December 2019 est.)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold 31 December 2020

$697.075 million (31 December 2020 est.)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold 31 December 2021

$872.541 million (31 December 2021 est.)

Taxes and other revenues

18.78% (of GDP) (2018 est.)

Unemployment rate

note

note: data exclude the West Bank

Unemployment rate 2019

25.34% (2019 est.)

Unemployment rate 2020

25.89% (2020 est.)

Unemployment rate 2021

24.9% (2021 est.)

Youth unemployment rate (ages 15-24)

female

69%

male

33.7%

note

note: includes the West Bank

total

39.6% (2021 est.)

Carbon dioxide emissions

from coal and metallurgical coke

0 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

from petroleum and other liquids

3.341 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.) Data includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank

total emissions

3.341 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2019 est.) Data represented includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank

Electricity

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

installed generating capacity

215,000 kW (2020 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

Electricity access

electrification - total population

100% (2021)

note

note: data for Gaza Strip and West Bank combined

Electricity generation sources

biomass and waste

0% of total installed capacity (2020 est.) Data represented includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank

fossil fuels

100% 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

hydroelectricity

0% 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

tide and wave

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

Energy consumption per capita

Total energy consumption per capita 2019

13.604 million Btu/person (2019 est.) Data represented includes both the Gaza Strip and West Bank

Natural gas

consumption

0 cubic meters (2021 est.)

exports

0 cubic meters (2021 est.)

imports

0 cubic meters (2021 est.)

production

0 cubic meters (2021 est.)

proven reserves

0 cubic meters (2021 est.)

Petroleum

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

refined petroleum consumption

24,600 bbl/day (2019 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

Broadband - fixed subscriptions

note

note: includes the West Bank

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants

7 (2020 est.)

total

376,911 (2020 est.)

Broadcast media

1 TV station and about 10 radio stations; satellite TV accessible

Internet country code

.ps; note - IANA has designated .ps for the Gaza Strip, same as the West Bank

Internet users

note

note: includes the West Bank

percent of population

75% (2020 est.)

total

3,602,452 (2020 est.)

Telecommunication systems

domestic

fixed-line 9 per 100 and mobile-cellular 28 per 100 (includes West Bank) (2021)

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)

international

country code 970 or 972 (2018)

Telephones - fixed lines

note

includes the West Bank

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants

9 (2021 est.)

total subscriptions

485,829 (2021 est.)

Telephones - mobile cellular

note

includes the West Bank

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants

78 (2021 est.)

total subscriptions

4,052,966 (2021 est.)

Airports

1 (2021)

Airports - with paved runways

1

note

note: non-operational

Heliports

1 (2021)

Ports and terminals

major seaport(s)

Gaza

Roadways

note: see entry for the West Bank

Military - note

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)

Military and security forces

HAMAS does not have a conventional military in the Gaza Strip but maintains security forces in addition to its military wing, the 'Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades; the military wing reports to the HAMAS Political Bureau; there are several other militant groups operating in the Gaza Strip, most notably the Al-Quds Brigades of Palestine Islamic Jihad, which are usually but not always beholden to HAMAS's authority (2023)

Military and security service personnel strengths

the military wing of HAMAS has an estimated 20-25,000 fighters (2023)

Military equipment inventories and acquisitions

the military wing of HAMAS is armed with light weapons, including an inventory of improvised rocket, anti-tank missile, and mortar capabilities; HAMAS acquires its weapons through smuggling or local construction and receives some military support from Iran (2023)

Military expenditures

not available

Disputes - international

borders with both Egypt and Israel are sealed with barriers, fences, and walls; Israel completed an underground anti-tunnel barrier in 2021

Refugees and internally displaced persons

IDPs

1.9 million (as of 18 December 2023, 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)

refugees (country of origin)

1.6 million (Palestinian refugees) (2022)

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

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

Air pollutants

carbon dioxide emissions

3.23 megatons (2016 est.)

note

note: data represent combined total from the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

particulate matter emissions

30.82 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.)

Climate

temperate, mild winters, dry and warm to hot summers

Environment - current issues

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

Revenue from forest resources

0% of GDP (2018 est.)

Total renewable water resources

840 million cubic meters (2020 est.)

note

note: data represent combined total from the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

Total water withdrawal

agricultural

162 million cubic meters (2017 est.)

industrial

32 million cubic meters (2017 est.)

municipal

181.2 million cubic meters (2017 est.)

note

note: data represent combined total from the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

Urbanization

note

note: data represent Gaza Strip and the West Bank

rate of urbanization

2.85% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

urban population

77.6% of total population (2023)

Waste and recycling

municipal solid waste generated annually

1.387 million tons (2016 est.)

municipal solid waste recycled annually

6,935 tons (2013 est.)

note

note: data represent combined total from the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

percent of municipal solid waste recycled

0.5% (2013 est.)