Gaza’s donkey trade: prices surge from $1,000 to $30,000 as blockade deepens

**Lead**

Reports from the Gaza Strip indicate that the price of a single donkey has soared from around $1,000 to as much as $30,000 over the past year, a staggering increase that underscores the territory’s deepening isolation and the breakdown of conventional transport. The figure, widely cited by local traders and humanitarian monitors, has become a stark symbol of how war and siege economics are reshaping daily life in one of the world’s most densely populated enclaves.

**Context**

Gaza has been under a combined Israeli-Egyptian blockade since 2007, when Hamas took control of the territory. The blockade restricts the movement of goods and people, and since the escalation of hostilities in October 2023, the flow of fuel, spare parts and vehicles has been reduced to a trickle. Petrol and diesel are now virtually unavailable on the open market, and what little fuel does enter is often commandeered by armed groups or sold at exorbitant black-market prices. As a result, motorised transport – cars, trucks, even motorbikes – has become prohibitively expensive to run. Donkeys, once a humble beast of burden used mainly by farmers and small traders, have been thrust into the role of primary logistics asset.

The surge in donkey prices is not a sudden spike but the culmination of months of scarcity. In early 2024, a healthy adult donkey could be bought for roughly $1,000. By mid‑2025, prices had climbed to $10,000. Today, according to market sources in Gaza City and Khan Younis, a strong animal capable of pulling a cart of supplies can fetch $30,000 – more than the annual income of many Gazan families before the war. The animals themselves are becoming scarce: many have been killed in airstrikes, died from lack of fodder, or been smuggled out through tunnels. Breeding has all but stopped, and the remaining stock is ageing.

**Analysis**

This price explosion is more than an economic curiosity; it is a measure of the collapse of modern infrastructure. In a territory where unemployment exceeds 80 per cent and most of the population depends on aid, the ability to move food, water, medicine and construction materials is a matter of survival. Donkeys and horse‑drawn carts have become the only reliable means of distribution for humanitarian agencies and local businesses alike. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has noted that animal‑drawn transport now accounts for the majority of cargo movement within Gaza, a reversal of decades of motorisation.

From an opinion standpoint, the donkey price surge forces a uncomfortable reckoning with the nature of the blockade. Critics argue that the deliberate restriction of fuel and vehicle parts amounts to a form of collective punishment that regresses the territory to pre‑industrial conditions. The $30,000 donkey is not a market anomaly; it is the logical outcome of a policy that treats civilian infrastructure as a legitimate target. Humanitarian law prohibits the starvation of civilians as a method of warfare, and the inability to move essential supplies – even by animal – raises serious legal questions. The International Committee of the Red Cross has repeatedly called for the unimpeded entry of fuel and spare parts, but with little effect.

**Analysis (continued)**

For the average Gazan, the donkey has become both a lifeline and a luxury. Families that once owned a car now rely on a single donkey to fetch water from distribution points, carry children to makeshift clinics, or haul rubble for rebuilding. Those who cannot afford the new prices are forced to walk for hours, carrying what they can on their backs. The social stratification is stark: the wealthy – or those with access to foreign currency – can still buy a donkey, while the poor are left further behind. This dynamic is eroding the already fragile social fabric of Gaza, where inequality was already extreme before the current conflict.

Moreover, the donkey trade itself has become a vector for exploitation. Smugglers bring animals from Egypt through tunnels, charging fees that inflate the final price. Local dealers hoard stock, betting on further price rises. There are reports of donkeys being stolen and resold, and of families selling their last possessions to acquire one. The humanitarian community is alarmed: if the trend continues, even the donkey – the last resort of the desperate – will become unaffordable, and Gaza’s already paralysed economy will grind to a complete halt.

**Sources**

This article draws on reports from local traders and residents in Gaza City and Khan Younis, as well as data from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Price figures are based on market surveys conducted by humanitarian field staff and corroborated by multiple independent observers. No specific individuals are named due to security concerns for those on the ground.