Newly released iPhones are reaching Gaza through alleged smuggling networks even as restrictions on commercial imports leave residents struggling to obtain medicines, shelter materials and other essential goods, according to traders and humanitarian data.

The iPhone 18 Pro Max, released internationally by Apple on 18 September, appeared on the Gaza market within days despite restrictions on the entry of modern phones and other electronics, according to a report published on Saturday by Asharq Al-Awsat. Apple lists the device at a starting price of $1,299 in the United States. Apple

In Gaza, the newspaper reported that the phone initially sold for as much as 40,000 Israeli shekels before falling to about 28,000 shekels, compared with less than 6,000 shekels in the West Bank. Gazatte could not independently verify those local market prices. Asharq Al-Awsat

A Gaza City mobile phone dealer told Asharq Al-Awsat, anonymously, that limited quantities had been obtained from larger traders who used illicit routes through crossings and other areas controlled by Israeli forces.

Other traders interviewed by the newspaper alleged that Gaza-based merchants had worked with intermediaries on the Israeli side to move prohibited goods, including mobile phones, solar equipment and cigarettes, in return for substantial payments.

Some of those claims could not be independently corroborated. The newspaper also cited traders alleging that drones had at times been used to carry prohibited goods into Gaza.

Separate Israeli criminal proceedings, however, have established that authorities have investigated extensive wartime smuggling networks involving Israeli civilians and military personnel.

Israeli prosecutors have accused suspects, including army reservists, of receiving large payments to smuggle cigarettes, iPhones and other goods into Gaza. In one case, an indictment cited by The Times of Israel alleged that suspects divided hundreds of thousands of shekels from shipments containing cigarettes and iPhones. The Times of Israel

Bezalel Zini, brother of Shin Bet chief David Zini, was among those indicted in a separate case in February. Israeli prosecutors alleged that he used his military access to participate in repeated cigarette-smuggling operations into Gaza and received about 365,000 shekels. David Zini himself has not been implicated in the case. Jerusalem Post

The illicit trade is taking place alongside a formal commercial system in which the mix of goods entering Gaza remains a major humanitarian concern.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said that 884 commercial truckloads were collected by Gaza’s private sector between 7 and 13 September, but 290 of them — about 33 per cent — carried non-essential items. At the same time, shortages of essential medicines, engine oil, tyres, spare parts and shelter materials continued to affect health services and living conditions. OCHA - Occupied Palestinian Territory

OCHA said Israeli restrictions continue to severely limit the entry of items classified as “dual use”, including timber, tools, solar systems and some shelter equipment. Hundreds of thousands of pieces of timber and thousands of emergency shelter kits were awaiting clearance in early September as aid agencies prepared for winter. OCHA - Occupied Palestinian Territory

Humanitarian agencies have also called for greater entry of cooking gas, flour, fresh vegetables, fruit, dairy products and animal protein. Gaza market prices remain roughly 200 per cent above pre-October 2023 levels, according to OCHA’s September monitoring. OCHA - Occupied Palestinian Territory

Kerem Shalom has been Gaza’s only operational cargo crossing since the closure of the Zikim crossing in May, leaving both humanitarian and commercial supplies highly vulnerable to interruptions at a single entry point. OCHA - Occupied Palestinian Territory

The result is an uneven market in which expensive consumer products can sometimes be found while materials needed for shelter repairs, vehicle maintenance and medical care remain restricted or difficult to obtain through regular channels.