Three years after the Israel-Hamas war began on October 7, 2023, the human toll in Gaza continues to mount. The Palestinian death toll has reached 74,000, with 175,000 people wounded, according to the latest figures reported by the WAFA news agency.
An estimated 1.7 million to 1.9 million people remain displaced from their homes, nearly 90 per cent of the population.
Not only homes but also the hardest-hit sectors like health, education, commerce, and agriculture.
More than half of hospitals and clinics remain nonfunctional, with less than 1.5 per cent of cropland remaining undamaged and accessible.
According to a UNCTAD report, Gaza’s economy has experienced the world’s “most severe crisis on record.”
Israel’s intense military operations have damaged 92 per cent of economic establishments across Gaza.
Gaza’s GDP per capita in 2025 was USD 212 (USD 0.58 a day). This shows an 83 per cent decrease since 2022.
Life after three years of war affects the conditions of civilians every day. Healthcare and access to humanitarian aid, food insecurity, drinking water, proper shelter and sanitation create difficulties.
As per the UN assessment of September 2026, all six wastewater treatment plants were nonfunctional, and around 70 per cent of sewage pumping stations were inoperable.
The April 2026 UN–World Bank–EU assessment puts Gaza’s recovery and reconstruction needs at USD 71.4 billion over the next decade.
The Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment (RDNA) estimates that housing alone requires around USD 16.2 billion for reconstruction, while agriculture and food systems would require USD 10.5 billion, and health needs USD 10 billion.
Even if funding for reconstruction is met, obstacles such as restricted access, movement and damaged infrastructure persist.
The political and security arrangements in Gaza will also affect the distribution and implementation of funds.
Iran-backed proxy in Lebanon, Hezbollah, on October 8, 2023, attacked Israel to demonstrate its solidarity with the Palestinian people.
The attacks opened a second front along the Israel-Lebanon border while the war in Gaza was going on. As of October 2026, displacement is taking place and reconstruction is underway in Lebanon.
“Hezbollah has received USD 200 million from Iran to help the Lebanese people displaced by this year’s war with Israel,” sources say.
Tehran and Tel Aviv have been adversaries that often confront each other through allies. Iran-backed groups carried out attacks rather than a direct confrontation.
On April 1, 2024, an Israeli strike killed seven officers of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, including two senior commanders, which led to a direct attack from Tehran.
The Houthis, an Iran-backed Yemeni movement, attacked commercial and military shipping in the Red Sea, linking them to the Israel-Palestine war.
The attacks disrupted major maritime trade routes and connected this war to international shipping and global trade.
Three years after October 7, Gaza is now facing a humanitarian crisis that will take years to reconstruct, and the consequences of the war are being seen beyond the lands of Hamas.
