Gaza City, Gaza Strip – As sunset approaches, Islam Dardouna reaches toward a pot hanging over a makeshift stove crafted from a battered metal can, with scraps of paper and pieces of wood fueling the fire beneath. She turns her face away from the rising smoke, her features stained with a thin layer of soot and her clothes permeated with the lingering smell of fumes. In her right hand, she holds an asthma inhaler like a ladle or tongs, while with her other hand, she attempts to prepare food for her three children. The 34-year-old says in a strained voice, "I can no longer tolerate the fire at all. We heat water on it, cook on it... everything. It completely destroyed my health."

Dardouna has been displaced from Jabalia in northern Gaza since the start of Israel's genocidal war against Palestinians in October 2023. She now lives with her husband, 37-year-old Muath Dardouna, and their children in Sheikh Ajleen, west of Gaza City. Their home was destroyed a year and a half ago, and the family has moved repeatedly before settling in this camp alongside other displaced families. Dardouna suffers from asthma and chronic chest allergies, conditions she says began during Israel's 2008 war on Gaza when she inhaled smoke from a phosphorus bomb that struck her house. Her situation improved over the years but has dramatically worsened during the current war. She states, "I developed airway obstruction, and recently masses were found in my lungs."

Gaza has been grappling with a prolonged shortage of cooking gas and fuel since the war began. According to official sources in Gaza and United Nations agencies, even after a "ceasefire" took effect in October, which included provisions for fuel and essential goods, the quantities entering remain far below the population's actual needs. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports that the availability of cooking gas in Gaza remains "critically constrained," with limited supplies covering less than three percent of requirements.

Consequently, many families have been forced to rely on alternative and often hazardous cooking methods. UN data indicates that approximately 54.5% of households use firewood for cooking, about 43% burn waste or plastic, and only around 1.5% are able to cook with gas. Humanitarian groups warn that such unsafe alternatives endanger people's health and the environment due to prolonged exposure to smoke and toxic fumes produced by burning plastic and other waste.

The crisis has intensified during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, when families must prepare both suhoor meals before fasting and iftar meals afterward. Firewood has become expensive, requiring a daily budget, and lighting the fire before dawn is often difficult due to lack of lighting and unfavorable weather conditions, leading many to skip the pre-dawn meal entirely. Muath Dardouna explains, "Today, for example, it's raining and windy. I couldn't light the fire. Even when we break our fast, we wish we could drink a cup of tea or coffee afterwards, but we can't, because lighting the fire again is another struggle."

The General Petroleum Authority in Gaza issued a statement on Wednesday warning of the "catastrophic and dangerous consequences of the continued halt in cooking gas supplies" to the territory, stressing that the crisis "directly affects the lives of more than two million residents" amid already dire humanitarian conditions. The authority noted that Gaza faces a shortfall of about 70% of its actual gas needs compared to post-ceasefire levels and stated that preventing gas entry constitutes a "clear violation of the ceasefire understandings," calling for urgent international intervention.

Other families across Gaza share similar hardships. Amani Aed al-Bashleqi, 26, says cooking over fire makes food taste "flavorless" – not because the taste changes, but because "exhaustion and suffering have become part of every bite." She has a seven-month-old baby and worries about boiling water for his milk, sometimes resorting to unboiled water despite health risks. Iman Junaid, 34, displaced from Jabalia, cooks with her husband Jihad by burning plastic bottles, aware of the health dangers but having no choice. She remarks, "My little daughter is one year old, and her chest always hurts because she inhales the smoke."

For Dardouna, the solution extends beyond mere gas supplies. She asserts, "What we need is for life to become possible again. Let gas enter. Let goods enter at reasonable prices. Let there be basic necessities for a normal life." These words underscore the comprehensive crisis in Gaza, where daily survival has become an exhausting battle amid ongoing shortages and displacement.

Source: www.aljazeera.com