The effective physical ghetto-ization of Gaza would, in later years, also provide a mechanism for its isolation and the siege of the Strip that continues to this day.29 As a result of its encirclement, Gaza became dramatically more reliant on Israel in fundamental ways. All its infrastructure—electricity, water, and trade—was now inextricably dependent on Israel, and there was no way for the people of Gaza to develop any alternative. The conditions inside Gaza continued to decline steadily, as overcrowding, unemployment, restricted access to the rest of the world, and the lack of resources
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