Donkey prices in the Gaza Strip have soared as the animals emerge as a main means of transport, with cars and fuel nearly impossible to obtain during the war. A donkey that sold for about $1,000 before the war now fetches as much as $30,000, a jump of up to 30-fold for an animal that can haul rubble and goods in place of a vehicle.
Ahmed Thabet, a veterinarian in Gaza, recently watched a donkey sell for $30,000, Britain's Telegraph reported on the 15th. Before the war, donkeys sold for an average of $1,000 to $1,200.
Thabet said people who hear the figure ask whether he means $3,000, calling the situation hard to believe. One recent sale reached $20,000, and another donkey went for $30,000 last week.
Abu Sanad al-Sawarka, a local livestock trader, said prices for horses, donkeys and mules vary with the animal's health and build. Healthy, strong donkeys trade for 60,000 to 70,000 shekels, or about $19,000 to $23,000, he said.
The main driver of the surge is the collapse of car-based travel and transport during the war. Vehicle parts are scarce, and shortages of fuel and maintenance supplies have made it all but impossible to keep cars running. Engine oil reportedly costs as much as $1,000 per liter.
Donkeys have become the alternative for moving people and cargo. Residents load building rubble, waste and household goods onto donkey carts, which now serve in effect as public transit and prop up daily life in a territory shattered by war.
Shrinking supply is also pushing prices higher. The donkey population has fallen sharply as animals were killed in shelling or died for lack of feed. Locally, the number of donkeys and other draft animals is estimated to be about half what it was before the war.