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Obtaining humanitarian aid can be difficult and dangerous, and though some essentials are available at markets, they are prohibitively expensive for many Gazans.
July 31, 2025, 6:12 a.m. ET
Deadly chaos and violence have engulfed aid distribution in Gaza since Israel reconstituted the system in May as part of what it said was an effort to keep aid out of the hands of Hamas.
The mayhem — and the limited amount of aid entering the enclave in the first place — has led many Palestinians to give up trying to get humanitarian aid, even though starvation is mounting.
One of the few alternatives has been to buy food from markets in Gaza, which are stocked with a combination of aid materials — some of which may have been looted — commercial goods, and small amounts of locally grown produce. But the prices of many basic goods have skyrocketed.
“Have I ever seen this anywhere else to this extent?” Arif Husain, the chief economist at the U.N. World Food Program, said in a phone interview on Wednesday. “Absolutely not.”
+5,000
+10,000%
Average price,
JULY 27-30
Sugar (1 kg)
$106
$0.89
Onions (1 kg)
$34
$0.59
Tomatoes (1 kg)
$0.59
$30
Potatoes (1 kg)
$0.59
$30
Flour (25 kg)
$10
$305
Cucumbers (1 kg)
$0.59
$14
Diesel (1 liter)
$1.87
$36
Soap (1 bar)
$0.59
$10
Diapers (Pack of 40)
$8.61
$149
Firewood (1 kg)
$0.15
$2.08
Detergent (1 kg)
$2.38
$27
Dish soap (1 liter)
$1.78
$16
Oil (1 liter)
$2.67
$25
Rice (1 kg)
$2.38
$20
Baby formula (400 g)
$7.43
$51
Sanitary towels
(Pack of 10)
$1.78
$5.05
+5,000
+10,000%
Average price,
JULY 27-30
Sugar (1 kg)
$0.89
$106
$34
Onions (1 kg)
$0.59
Tomatoes (1 kg)
$30
$0.59
Potatoes (1 kg)
$30
$0.59
Flour (25 kg)
$10
$305
Cucumbers (1 kg)
$14
$0.59
Diesel (1 liter)
$36
$1.87
Soap (1 bar)
$10
$0.59
Diapers (Pack of 40)
$149
$8.61
Firewood (1 kg)
$2.08
$0.15
$27
Detergent (1 kg)
$2.38
Dish soap (1 liter)
$16
$1.78
$25
Oil (1 liter)
$2.67
$20
Rice (1 kg)
$2.38
Baby formula (400 g)
$51
$7.43
Sanitary towels
(Pack of 10)
$1.78
$5.05
Sugar now costs about $106 per kilogram compared with 89 cents before the war, flour is $12 per kilogram compared with 42 cents, and tomatoes are $30 per kilogram compared with 59 cents, according to data published this week by the Gaza Governorate Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
