Moein Abu Odeh clambered up a pile of rubble in southern Gaza, searching for clothes, shoes, anything he could sell to raise cash more than a year since Israel started its relentless bombardments.
The father-of-four delved under blocks and brushed away piles of concrete dust at the site of one airstrike in the wrecked city of Khan Younis. His plan was to sell what he found to buy flour.
“If food and drink were available, believe me, I would give (these clothes) to charity,” he said. “But the struggles we are going through (mean we) have to sell our clothes to eat and drink.”
Widespread shortages and months of grinding war have generated a trade in old clothing, much of it salvaged from the homes of people who have died in the conflict.
At one makeshift market, shoes, shirts, sweaters and sneakers were laid out on dusty blankets.
A girl tried on a single worn-out boot, which could come in handy this winter if she can afford it in Gaza’s ruined economy.
A trader got an edge on his competitors by shouting out that his wares were European.
One man laughed as he got a young boy to try on a green jacket.
“We get clothing from a man whose house was destroyed. He was digging in the concrete to get some (clothing) and we buy them like this and sell them at a good price,” displaced Palestinian Louay Abdel-Rahman said.
He and his family arrived in the city from another part of Gaza with only the clothes they were wearing. So he also keeps some back for them. “The seasons have changed from summer to winter and we need clothing,” he said.
Israel’s military campaign since Hamas‘s Oct. 7, 2023 attack has devastated the enclave, leaving an estimated 42 million tons of debris piled where houses, mosques, schools and shops used to stand.
In April, the U.N. estimated it would take 14 years to dispose of the wreckage. The U.N. official overseeing the problem said the clean-up would cost at least $1.2 billion.
More than 128,000 buildings have been destroyed or severely or moderately damaged in Gaza as a result of the conflict, the U.N. says. Underneath all of that are seams of mangled clothes.
“All our children only have short-sleeve clothing and nobody is helping them,” Saeed Doula, a father-of-seven, said. “The war is all-encompassing.”