Pipeline to power – how Israel stole Gaza’s natural gas reserves
In 2000, the Palestinian Authority made a significant discovery of natural gas reserves close to the coast of Gaza, estimated at approximately 1 trillion cubic meters of natural gas[1], enough to make Palestine self-sufficient and have surplus for export. These natural gas reserves, being close to the shoreline, would be less expensive to extract and likely could have been offered at a more competitive price that Israeli gas. This could have opened a new stream of revenue and strengthened Palestine’s political power in international relations.
Sadly, Palestinians would never reap the benefits of this finding. After the construction of two drilling wells was started in 2000, Israel took control of them and prohibited access to the Palestinian Authority, in clear violation of international law, as highlighted by a 2019 UN report.
By denying access to these resources, Israel effectively pushes Palestine off the market. This monopolization allows Israel to sell natural gas to neighboring Arab countries in dire need, such as Egypt and Jordan, without Palestinian competition. This is a massive blow to Palestine’s economy in two ways: firstly, it takes the stream of revenue Palestine could have made from exporting gas, crippling Palestine’s economy. Secondly, it makes sure that Palestinians continue to rely on buying Israeli gas for their own needs.[2] These gas deals with Israel may also partially explain Arab countries’ abandonment of the Palestinian cause.
On October 30th 2023, amidst the ongoing genocide, Israel granted gas concessions to six companies from the United Kingdom, Italy, and Azerbaijan. Given the critical need for natural gas in these countries, these concessions have power to enforce political (and possibly military) support for Israel, no matter the war crimes and crimes against humanity documented by human rights organizations.
So far, the gas reserves still lie before the coast of Gaza untouched. If Israel succeeds in seizing land in the Gaza Strip, as a verified leak of a Israeli policy paper clearly states as a goal, it is possible that they could start exploiting the wells built by the Palestinian Authority in 2000, thus once again profiting massively off Palestinian resources in violation of international law.
Additionally, this throws the cruel narrative that Gaza is at fault for its poverty into sharp relief. The illegal 17-year blockade of Gaza have stripped Palestine from accessing its natural resources, but the seizure of these gas wells in 2000 shows that the Israeli government has enforced a policy of taking Palestinian resources long before Hamas came into power.
Two key findings can be highlighted from this report: Firstly, the current lack of fuel for basic infrastructure in Gaza is not the result of Palestinian “underdevelopment,” but of deliberate policies of Israeli occupation. Secondly, the absolute unfair monopoly that Israel has gained on natural gas by seizing Palestinian resources must be addressed to change the political balance, as Israel uses it as a powerful tool to gain international political support.
It becomes clear that the issue of Palestine/Israel is not one of religion or safety, but one of economic power, just as the 2003 US invasion of Iraq was.
Sources:
[1] The Economic Costs of the Israeli Occupation for the Palestinian People: The Unrealized Oil and Natural Gas Potential. United Nations Conference on Trade And Development, 2019. https://unctad.org/system/files/official-document/gdsapp2019d1_en.pdf
[2] Towards a Resilient Energy Sector in the State of Palestine. 2019. https://www.undp.org/papp/blog/towards-resilient-energy-sector-state-palestine