By Shahad Ali
This article was originally published by Truthout
Freelance workers in Gaza contend with devastated infrastructure and incapacitating Israeli restrictions.
Before the war on Gaza began in 2023, freelance work had become a lifeline for thousands of Gazans. It was one of the few ways they could connect with the outside world and secure jobs that offered incomes several times higher than those available locally. According to the United Nations, around 12,000 people in Gaza were earning their livelihoods through online freelance work before the war.
Despite frequent power outages and unreliable internet service, Gazans demonstrated remarkable resilience. This was reflected in the growth of business incubators that provided Palestinian youth in Gaza with intensive training in the skills most in demand in the global market, including coding, graphic design, content writing, and digital marketing. These incubators also introduced participants to major freelancing platforms, enabling them to offer their services to clients around the world.
Personally, I had the opportunity to join a training program during my second year at university at one of these incubators, Gaza Sky Geeks. After completing the program, I secured several freelance writing contracts with companies in the Gulf. The income I earned enabled me to pay my university tuition and achieve financial independence at a time when finding a local job was virtually impossible.
Now, the war on Gaza has severely devastated this sector by destroying the very foundations on which it depends. From the earliest days of the war, Israeli authorities cut off fuel supplies and halted the operation of Gaza’s only power plant. Most residents now rely on remaining solar panels and privately operated diesel-powered generators for electricity. However, solar panels often fail to provide sufficient power, particularly during the winter months and periods of cloudy weather. Meanwhile, electricity generated by diesel-powered generators has become prohibitively expensive due to soaring fuel prices. One kilowatt-hour now costs around $8.
The war has also destroyed more than 50 percent of Gaza’s internet networks and communication lines, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Telecommunications and Digital Economy. As a result, internet services across Gaza have become increasingly unreliable, with repeated disruptions and outages.
At the same time, major technology hubs and business incubators have been reduced to rubble, while countless laptops and smartphones have been destroyed, burned, or confiscated during Israeli ground incursions. The situation has been further compounded by Israeli restrictions on the entry of electronic devices into Gaza. Israel classifies many electronic devices, including phones, laptops, and spare parts, as “dual-use” materials that could potentially be used for military purposes, tightly restricting their entry into the Strip.
Adding to this suffering, Israel’s restrictions on international money transfers have made it nearly impossible for freelancers in Gaza to receive their payments directly. As a result, they have been forced to rely on money transfer offices to access their earnings, and these offices often charge very high commissions — typically between 15 and 20 percent of the payment. This means that freelancers lose a significant portion of their income simply because their employers are unable to transfer payments directly to their bank accounts.
These challenges have severely complicated work in the freelance sector, causing thousands of Gazans to lose their jobs as they have been deprived of the essential means that allowed them to sustain their work in this field.
Mohamed Sultan, 22, a freelance programmer, told me that before the war in Gaza began, he had secured freelance contracts with leading technology companies in the Gulf and Europe. “I worked on more than 10 projects while I was still a student. In some months, I earned up to $600, which helped me support my family financially.” Sultan said that the latest war on Gaza destroyed everything he had worked tirelessly to build. He told me:
From the first days of the war, I no longer had access to electricity or the internet to continue my work. The immense psychological pressure I experienced, including the loss of my home, my father, and repeated displacement, also prevented me from maintaining my focus and professional passion. When we finally settled in a tent in Al-Mawasi, Khan Younis, I found a nearby space equipped with electricity and internet. I also managed to recover my laptop from the rubble and replace its broken screen, which cost me $200. I was ready to get back to work, so I immediately contacted the companies and clients I had previously collaborated with. However, I discovered that many had canceled their projects with me due to the prolonged interruption in communication. I was forced to rebuild my professional profile and network literally from scratch. I had no choice but to keep trying, especially after losing my father, the family’s main breadwinner, while also facing the scarcity of local job opportunities, particularly after the war.
Aya Abu Maislah, 25, a freelance graphic designer and content writer, also told me that despite the harsh conditions she endured during the war, she was forced to continue her freelance work because she desperately needed the income. She told me:
Every day, I used to walk more than two kilometers carrying a heavy bag containing my laptop and other equipment just to reach the nearest workspace. Although a significant portion of my earnings was lost to the high commissions charged by money transfer offices for receiving payments on my behalf, and I also had to pay $100 a month to use the workspace, I kept working because it was better than having no income at all. It at least enabled me to afford basic necessities.
However, Abu Maislah said she has now lost her job completely after the laptop she relied on for work was damaged beyond repair due to unstable electricity while charging, which affected its internal electronic components. She told me:
Once my laptop was damaged, I felt as though my life had suddenly come to a halt. I tried to buy a new one, but I couldn’t because laptops had become extremely scarce and prohibitively expensive, with some costing more than $1,000 — far beyond what I could afford. It broke my heart to lose all the contracts I had secured and my main source of income, which had helped my family and me survive, simply because I couldn’t afford to replace my laptop.
Abu Maislah and Sultan are two examples of the thousands of Gazans whose freelance careers have been disrupted by the war. Although some coworking spaces and business incubators in Gaza have reopened, offering freelancers access to essential resources such as internet connectivity, electricity, and a space where they can continue their work and communicate with clients, these efforts have not been enough to overcome the immense challenges they face as a result of Israeli restrictions.
At a time when Gaza is facing an unprecedented economic crisis, with unemployment reaching roughly 80 percent, many freelancers view these restrictions as an Israeli attempt to close one of the few remaining pathways for young Gazans to overcome their geographic isolation and achieve a basic level of financial independence.
This article was originally published by Truthout and is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0). Please maintain all links and credits in accordance with our republishing guidelines.
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