UN study: Poverty rate in Palestine will rise by more than a third if the war continues for a second month

The poverty rate in Palestine will rise sharply if the conflict continues in the Gaza Strip, warned a UN study released today.

The poverty rate will rise by 34 percent, and an additional half million people will suffer if the conflict continues for a second month, according to the study released by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA).

Entitled “The Gaza War: Expected Social and Economic Impacts on the State of Palestine,” the study noted that the gross domestic product (GDP) in Palestine will fall by 8.4 percent, representing a loss of 1.7 billion U.S. dollars.

It added that if the conflict continues for a third month, the poverty rate will rise by about 45 percent, increasing the number of people in poverty by over 660,000 in parallel to a 12.2-percent decline in GDP, with losses amounting to 2.5 billion U.S. dollars.

It estimates that the poverty rate in Palestine has risen by 20 percent a month into the war as its GDP has fallen by 4.2 percent. At the same time, 390,000 jobs have been lost so far.