GAZA, (PIC)
What many believed marked the end of the Israeli war in Gaza has instead proven to be a fragile illusion. Nearly 200 days after a ceasefire came into effect in October 2025, the reality on the ground remains complex, violent, and deeply unstable.
While large-scale Israeli military operations have decreased, the agreement has failed to resolve the broader crisis. Humanitarian, economic, and political conditions continue to deteriorate, according to UN reports and field data.
Ongoing violations and rising casualties
Despite the ceasefire, violations have persisted daily and at an increasing pace. More than 3,000 Israeli breaches have been recorded, including live fire incidents, airstrikes, ground incursions into residential areas, and the demolition of homes and infrastructure.
According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, at least 817 people have been martyred and 2,296 injured since the ceasefire began. An additional 762 bodies have been recovered, bringing the total death toll since October 2023 to over 72,500, with more than 172,000 wounded.
Large areas of Gaza remain under direct Israeli military control, particularly in the east and north within what is known as the “yellow zone,” which now covers approximately 58 percent of the territory. Its recent expansion has further deepened insecurity, leaving residents feeling that no real truce exists, only a reduced intensity of war.
A deepening humanitarian crisis
The humanitarian situation remains catastrophic. Around 90 percent of Gaza’s population has been displaced at least once, often multiple times, and most now live in tents or overcrowded shelters lacking basic services.
The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that habitable space continues to shrink, forcing hundreds of thousands into densely packed areas, especially near high-risk zones. Residents face severe shortages of clean water, food, electricity, and healthcare amid the near collapse of essential systems.
Humanitarian protocols tied to the ceasefire have largely gone unfulfilled. While the agreement stipulated the entry of 600 aid trucks per day, actual deliveries have reached only about 39 percent of that target.
Fuel supplies have been even more restricted, meeting less than 15 percent of required levels, disrupting electricity, water, and sanitation services.
Economic collapse and stalled reconstruction
Gaza’s economy has effectively collapsed. Infrastructure has been widely destroyed, and reconstruction efforts remain stalled due to restrictions on building materials and continued instability.
Direct economic losses are estimated at around $70 billion, reflecting the cost of rebuilding vital sectors devastated during the war. The destruction has erased decades of development and pushed living conditions back by generations.
Agricultural production has also been severely impacted, as large areas of farmland in eastern Gaza have become inaccessible military zones. Combined with widespread unemployment and poverty, the local economy has ground to a halt, leaving residents heavily dependent on aid.
Markets remain unstable due to unpredictable restrictions on goods entering the territory, creating ongoing shortages and price volatility. Officials describe the control of crossings as a central driver of the humanitarian crisis.
A collapsing health system
The health sector continues to operate under immense strain. Hospitals face critical shortages of medicines, equipment, and fuel, while environmental conditions contribute to the spread of disease.
According to WHO, more than 18,500 patients require urgent medical evacuation, including around 4,000 children. At the same time, 59 percent of essential medicines are completely out of stock, and over a third of medical supplies are depleted.
Healthcare services rely heavily on generators, which are at constant risk of shutdown due to fuel shortages, threatening already fragile medical care.
Neither war nor peace
Two hundred days into the ceasefire, Gaza exists in a state that defies simple definition, neither fully at war nor at peace. Although large-scale offensives have subsided, daily life remains shaped by violence, deprivation, and systemic instability.
For residents, the ceasefire has not brought relief, but rather a prolonged phase of hardship marked by continued violations, slow violence, and an unrelenting blockade.
