In fact, a kilogram of tomatoes in Gaza has jumped from $1.50 to $4 in days. Only 200 trucks are entering daily vs. 600 needed. Cooking oil, flour and canned goods have vanished from shelves in parts of Gaza City. 18,000 patients are still waiting for medical evacuation.

Israel closed Gaza’s crossings on February 28, as Israeli and US forces attacked Iran, halting humanitarian access in and out of Gaza and the movement of patients in need of medical evacuation. Israeli authorities later reopened the Karem Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom to the Israelis) crossing for the “gradual entry” of aid, but access has remained restricted.

The Rafah crossing with Egypt has stayed shut, while about 18,000 people, including wounded children and patients with chronic illnesses, were still waiting to be evacuated.

According to Hanan Balkhy, World Health Organization (WHO) regional director for the Eastern Mediterranean, only about 200 trucks a day were entering Gaza, compared with roughly 600 needed daily to support the territory’s population. Traders, business owners and shoppers were all describing the same pattern: fewer goods entering, faster sellouts, and rising prices across the board. He said essentials, including cooking oil, flour and some canned foods, had largely vanished from shelves in parts of Gaza City. The United Nations humanitarian office, OCHA, said on March 6 that the closure of crossings “in the context of the regional escalation” had already increased the prices of both food and non-food items across Gaza. It said the current pace of truck entry was too low to sustain restocking, with many items selling out within days.

This marks a reversal from only weeks earlier. The World Food Programme’s (WFP) market monitoring for February had shown some improvement in food availability and lower prices for certain staples compared with earlier phases of the war. But the WFP now says the latest border closures have triggered sharp food price increases, and that although some crossings have reopened, prices remain high.