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| Geography |
| Strategic strip of land along Mideast-North African trade routes has experienced an incredibly turbulent history; the town of Gaza itself has been besieged countless times in its history |
| Location: | Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Israel |
| Geographic coordinates: | 31 25 N, 34 20 E |
| Area: | total: 360 sq km land: 360 sq km water: 0 sq km
Size comparison: slightly more than twice the size of Washington, DC |
| Land Boundaries: | total: 62 km border countries: Egypt 11 km, Israel 51 km |
| Coastline: | 40 km |
| Maritime claims: | see entry for Israel note: effective 3 January 2009 the Gaza maritime area is closed to all maritime traffic and is under blockade imposed by Israeli Navy until further notice |
| Climate: | temperate, mild winters, dry and warm to hot summers |
| Terrain: | flat to rolling, sand- and dune-covered coastal plain |
| Elevation extremes: | lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m highest point: Abu 'Awdah (Joz Abu 'Awdah) 105 m |
| Natural resources: | arable land, natural gas |
| Land use: | arable land: 29% permanent crops: 21% other: 50% (2002) |
| Irrigated land: | 180 sq km; note - includes West Bank (2003) |
| Natural hazards: | droughts |
| Current Environment Issues: | desertification; salination of fresh water; sewage treatment; water-borne disease; soil degradation; depletion and contamination of underground water resources |
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| People |
| Population: | 1,763,387 (July 2013 est.) |
| Age structure: | 0-14 years: 43.5% (male 394,108/female 372,897) 15-24 years: 20.9% (male 188,626/female 179,529) 25-54 years: 29.6% (male 268,122/female 254,630) 55-64 years: 3.4% (male 29,682/female 29,933) 65 years and over: 2.6% (male 18,701/female 27,159) (2013 est.) population pyramid: |
| Median age: | total: 17.9 years male: 17.7 years female: 18.1 years (2012 est.) |
| Population growth rate: | 3.108% (2012 est.) |
| Birth rate: | 34.3 births/1,000 population (2012 est.) |
| Death rate: | 3.22 deaths/1,000 population (July 2012 est.) |
| Net migration rate: | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2012 est.) |
| Sex ratio: | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2011 est.) |
| Infant mortality rate: | total: 16.55 deaths/1,000 live births male: 17.65 deaths/1,000 live births female: 15.38 deaths/1,000 live births (2012 est.) |
| Life expectancy at birth: | total population: 74.16 years male: 72.48 years female: 75.95 years (2012 est.) |
| Total fertility rate: | 4.41 children born/woman (2013 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: | NA |
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: | NA |
| HIV/AIDS - deaths: | NA |
| Nationality: | noun: NA adjective: NA |
| Ethnic groups: | Palestinian Arab |
| Religions: | Muslim (predominantly Sunni) 99.3%, Christian 0.7% |
| Languages: | Arabic, Hebrew (spoken by many Palestinians), English (widely understood) |
| Literacy: | definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 92.4% male: 96.7% female: 88% (2004 est.) |
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| Government |
| Country name: | conventional long form: none conventional short form: Gaza Strip local long form: none local short form: Qita' Ghazzah |
| Government type: | |
| Capital: | |
| Administrative divisions: | |
| Independence: | |
| National holiday: | |
| Constitution: | |
| Legal system: | |
| Suffrage: | |
| Executive branch: | |
| Legislative branch: | |
| Judicial branch: | |
| Political parties and leaders: | |
| Political pressure groups and leaders: | |
| International organization participation: | |
| Diplomatic representation in the US: | |
| Diplomatic representation from the US: | |
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| Economy |
| Israeli security controls imposed since the end of the second intifada have degraded economic conditions in the Gaza Strip, the smaller of the two areas comprising the Palestinian territories. Israeli-imposed border closures, which became more restrictive after HAMAS seized control of the territory in June 2007, have resulted in high unemployment, elevated poverty rates, and a sharp contraction of the private sector that had relied primarily on export markets. The population depends on government spending - by both the Palestinian Authority and HAMAS's de facto government - and humanitarian assistance. Changes to Israeli restrictions on imports in 2010 resulted in a rebound in some economic activity, but regular exports from Gaza still are not permitted. Standard-of-living measures remain below levels seen in the mid-1990s. |
| GDP (purchasing power parity): | GDP (purchasing power parity): see entry for West Bank |
| GDP (official exchange rate): | |
| GDP - real growth rate: | see entry for West Bank |
| GDP - per capita (PPP): | GDP - per capita (PPP): see entry for West Bank |
| GDP - composition by sector: | see entry for West Bank |
| Labor force: | 348,200 (2010) |
| Labor force - by occupation: | agriculture: 5.1% industry: 15.6% services: 79.3% (2010 est.) |
| Unemployment rate: | 30% (2012 est.) 40% (2011 est.) |
| Population below poverty line: | 38% (2010 est.) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share: | |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices): | Inflation rate (consumer prices): 3.5% (2012 est.) 2.9% (2011 est.) note: includes West Bank |
| Budget: | see entry for West Bank |
| Agriculture - products: | olives, fruit, vegetables, flowers; beef, dairy products |
| Industries: | textiles, food processing, furniture |
| Industrial production growth rate: | see entry for West Bank |
| Electricity - production: | 51,000 kWh (2011 est.) country comparison to the world: 218 |
| Electricity - consumption: | 202,000 kWh (2009) |
| Electricity - exports: | 0 kWh (2011 est.) |
| Electricity - imports: | 193,000 kWh (2011 est.) |
| Current account balance: | see entry for West Bank |
| Exports: | see entry for West Bank |
| Exports - commodities: | strawberries, carnations, vegetables (small and irregular shipments, as permitted to transit the Israeli-controlled Kerem Shalom crossing) |
| Imports: | see entry for West Bank |
| Imports - commodities: | food, consumer goods note: Israel permits basic commercial imports through the Kerem Shalom crossing, but many "dual use" goods, such as construction materials and electronics, are smuggled through tunnels beneath Gaza's border with Egypt |
| Debt - external: | see entry for West Bank |
| Exchange rates: | new Israeli shekels (ILS) per US dollar - 3.903 (2012 est.) 3.5781 (2011 est.) 3.739 (2010 est.) 3.9323 (2009) 3.56 (2008) |
| Fiscal year: | calendar year |
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| Communications |
| Telephones in use: | 337,000 (includes West Bank) (2010) country comparison to the world: 112 |
| Cellular Phones in use: | 2.405 million (includes West Bank) (2010) |
| Telephone system: | general assessment: Gaza continues to repair the damage to its telecommunications infrastructure caused by fighting in 2009 domestic: Israeli company BEZEK and the Palestinian company PALTEL are responsible for fixed-line services; the Palestinian JAWWAL company provides cellular services international: country code - 970 (2009) |
| Radio broadcast stations: | |
| Television broadcast stations: | |
| Internet country code: | .ps; note - same as West Bank |
| Internet hosts: | |
| Internet users: | 1.379 million (includes West Bank) (2009) |
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| Transportation |
| Airports: | 1 (2012) country comparison to the world: 218 |
| Airports (paved runways): | total: 1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2012) |
| Heliports: | 1 (2012) |
| Roadways: | note: see entry for West Bank |
| Ports and terminals: | Gaza |
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| Military |
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| Military branches: | Hamas does not have a conventional military in the Gaza Strip, but maintains security forces in addition to its military wing, the 'Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades; the military wing reports to the external Hamas Political Bureau leadership, which has been in exile in Cairo and Doha since closing its Damascus headquarters in late 2011 (2013) |
| Manpower available for military service: | males age 16-49: 385,961 (2010 est.) |
| Manpower fit for military service: | males age 16-49: 335,820 females age 16-49: 319,847 (2010 est.) |
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