Occupation of the Gaza Strip by Egypt living. Because the Egyptian government restricted movement to and from the Gaza Strip, its inhabitants could not look elsewhere for gainful employment. In 1955, one observer (a member of the United Nations Secretariat) noted that "For all practical purposes it would be true to say that for the last six years in Gaza over 300,000 poverty stricken people have been physically confined to an area the size of a large city park." Occupation of the Gaza Strip by Egypt The occupation of the Gaza Strip by Egypt occurred between 1948 and October 1956 and again from March 1957 to June
Israel–Gaza barrier been challenged on the basis that Israel continues to exercise control over Gaza's territorial waters and airspace, despite Gaza not being part of Israel and Gazans not having Israeli passports. In June 2007, Hamas took over Gaza, ousting the forces of Fatah, the faction led by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and effectively separating Gaza from the West Bank in terms of its administration. Hamas had won legislative elections in January 2006. Israel intensified its blockade of the Gaza Strip in June 2007, when Hamas took power and began increasing its rocket fire into Israel. On 27 December 2008, Israel