After the conquest of occupied Palestinian territory, millions of Palestinians were displaced and driven to Gaza. Therefore, it is sometimes wrongly thought that Gaza is primarily a refugee camp; this is false. It is a very densely populated area of 45 square kilometers.

In fact, about 2.2 million people currently live there and the deployment of explosive weapons in densely populated areas cause many civilian casualties and damage to public space and infrastructure.

On top of the occupation, the Israeli government has maintained an illegal blockade of the Gaza Strip for 16 years. This means that the Gaza Strip's sea area, airspace and land borders are closed off. This is why it has been called the "largest open-air prison," by the United Nations and others. The Israeli government not only determines which people or goods are allowed to cross the border, but also controls the supply of basic necessities such as water, electricity, medicine and gas. Since the escalation, the Israeli government has expressed its intention to switch to a full blockade, thereby stopping the supply completely. The residents of Gaza are being deprived of their basic needs and collectively punished. Collective punishment like this is also not allowed under international humanitarian law.