People's Light in Gaza's Darkness
Abstract
How long does it take for a crisis to become a state of being? Gazans are in the fifteenth year of a devastating electricity "crisis" as a direct consequence of the Israeli occupation's ongoing blockade and its perennial bombing campaigns against this part of Palestine. Two-thirds of Gaza's power is under the control of the oppressor, which can switch it off and on at will. Much of the remainder comes from Gaza's sole power plant, which Israeli bombers destroyed twice, in 2006 and 2014. The Israeli occupation authorities have subjected that plant and the wider electric grid to periodic damage ever since. During 2017-18, the average daily availability of electricity in Gaza was seven hours. Between 2019 and 2021, it hovered between twelve and thirteen hours. However, during intensive Israel assaults, it can fall to four hours per day, as occurred in May 2021.