Poverty rates in Gaza reached 75 per cent in 2019, with 34 per cent of Gaza residents living in abject poverty, Deputy Welfare Ministry in Gaza Ghazi Hamad said yesterday.

In a press conference held at the headquarters of the enclave’s Ministry of Information, Hamad said that 70 per cent of Palestinians living in Gaza are food insecure.

“Large numbers of Gaza residents are forced to borrow money to buy food and water due to income shortages and lack of clean tap water,” Hamad said.

He blamed the Israeli occupation’s violations against the Palestinians and their resources for the misery of the Palestinians in Gaza.

“Beside the Israeli siege and repeated offensives on Gaza, the internal Palestinian political division resulted in a complex and difficult political, economic and social reality,” he said.

Gaza has been under strict Israeli siege for 12 consecutive years.

READ: Palestinians in Gaza protest for 79th Friday