Key facts
- Disposable cigarette lighters have become essential luxury items in Gaza's tent camps.
- Scarcity of gas and fuel forces families to use lighters for cooking fires.
- The price of a single lighter has surged to 100 shekels ($32.55) from three for one shekel ($0.33).
- A trade has emerged for repairing broken lighters due to affordability issues.
- Gaza's economy is severely impacted, with unemployment exceeding 80%.
In the tent camps of southern Gaza, a disposable cigarette lighter has become a critical item for daily survival, akin to food and water. Displaced families struggle with the scarcity of gas and fuel, relying on burning cardboard, plastic, and wood for cooking, making lighters indispensable.
Before the conflict, three lighters cost one shekel ($0.33), but now a single lighter commands 100 shekels ($32.55), a price many cannot afford. This scarcity has led to lighters being shared among dozens of families and has created a niche business for individuals like Hassan Abu Latifa, who repairs broken lighters. He stated that the soaring prices compel families to repair rather than replace the essential tools.
The war has devastated Gaza's economy, with unemployment estimated to exceed 80% and poverty nearing 100%. For some, like displaced mother Iftikhar al-Kafarna, who bakes bread to earn money, the availability of a lighter is directly tied to her livelihood, as work stops without it.