{ "Introduction": { "Background": { "text": "
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 the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Israel in 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 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 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 2021, HAMAS launched rockets into 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 coordinated demonstrations along the Gaza-Israel security fence. 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.see entry for the West Bank
" } }, "Energy": { "Electricity access": { "electrification - total population": { "text": "100% (2022 est.)" }, "note": "note: includes the West Bank and the Gaza Strip" }, "Electricity": { "installed generating capacity": { "text": "352,000 kW (2023 est.)" }, "consumption": { "text": "6.956 billion kWh (2023 est.)" }, "imports": { "text": "6.925 billion kWh (2023 est.)" }, "transmission/distribution losses": { "text": "988 million kWh (2023 est.)" }, "note": "note: includes the West Bank and the Gaza Strip" }, "Electricity generation sources": { "fossil fuels": { "text": "66.5% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)" }, "solar": { "text": "33.5% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)" }, "note": "note: includes the West Bank and the Gaza Strip" }, "Coal": { "exports": { "text": "1 metric tons (2023 est.)" }, "note": "note: includes the West Bank and the Gaza Strip" }, "Petroleum": { "refined petroleum consumption": { "text": "29,000 bbl/day (2023 est.)" }, "note": "note: includes the West Bank and the Gaza Strip" }, "Energy consumption per capita": { "Total energy consumption per capita 2023": { "text": "14.991 million Btu/person (2023 est.)" }, "note": "note: includes the West Bank and the Gaza Strip" } }, "Communications": { "Telephones - fixed lines": { "total subscriptions": { "text": "383,653 (2023 est.)" }, "subscriptions per 100 inhabitants": { "text": "7 (2023 est.)" }, "note": "note: entry includes the West Bank and the Gaza Strip" }, "Telephones - mobile cellular": { "total subscriptions": { "text": "4,148,420 (2023 est.)" }, "subscriptions per 100 inhabitants": { "text": "77 (2023 est.)" }, "note": "note: entry includes the West Bank and the Gaza Strip" }, "Broadcast media": { "text": "1 TV station and about 10 radio stations; satellite TV accessible" }, "Internet country code": { "text": ".ps", "note": "note: IANA has designated .ps for the Gaza Strip, same as the West Bank" }, "Internet users": { "percent of population": { "text": "87% (2023 est.)" }, "note": "note: includes the West Bank" }, "Broadband - fixed subscriptions": { "total": { "text": "431,000 (2023 est.)" }, "subscriptions per 100 inhabitants": { "text": "8 (2023 est.)" }, "note": "note: includes the West Bank" } }, "Transportation": { }, "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "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 (2025)", "note": "note: HAMAS is a US designated Foreign Terrorist Organization; see Terrorist Organizations under References" }, "Military expenditures": { "text": "not available" }, "Military and security service personnel strengths": { "text": "prior to the start of the 2023-2025 conflict with Israel, the military wing of HAMAS was estimated to have 20-30,000 fighters (2024)" } }, "Terrorism": { "Terrorist group(s)": { "text": "Army of Islam; Abdallah Azzam Brigades; al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade; HAMAS; Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps/Qods Force; 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 the Terrorism reference guide" } }, "Transnational Issues": { "Refugees and internally displaced persons": { "IDPs": { "text": "2,032,011 (2024 est.)" } } } }