I told my friend JB earlier how I get access in Gaza to the money from my fundraising campaign.

[mohshbair@mastodon.social]

I told my friend JB earlier how I get access in Gaza to the money from my fundraising campaign.
🍉💸🇵🇸💸🇵🇸💸🍉

I think it could interest many people, so I’m copying my reply here.

🧵⬇️⬇️⬇️

[mohshbair@mastodon.social]

Now I’ll explain how it works from my side as a citizen in Gaza. There are three main ways I can receive money:
3/15

[mohshbair@mastodon.social]

Donors pay the amount they want on Chuffed. Chuffed keeps the money for about 7 or 10 days, then they send it to Thomas—my fundraiser’s bank account. Then he sends it to me with PayPal. Thomas has been reliable, and he talks to me every day.
1/15

Many people trust Chuffed better than PayPal. If you’d like to send me money and you don’t mind using PayPal, we would avoid fees from Chuffed.
https://paypal.me/Mohammedshbair727

Chuffed is ok too, otherwise.
2/15

[mohshbair@mastodon.social]

If I want to withdraw cash in Israeli shekels, the exchange rate fluctuates a lot. For example, $100 can equal 336–370 ILS, but due to fees and rates at local offices, you might only get about 210 ILS in cash for every $100, which is equivalent to about $62.
7/15

[mohshbair@mastodon.social]

3. International bank transfer (IBAN)— Money can be sent directly to my bank, but this also involves fees.
6/15

[mohshbair@mastodon.social]

2. USDT (cryptocurrency)— This is also an option, but it requires a digital wallet and conversion into local currency.
5/15

[mohshbair@mastodon.social]

1. PayPal— There is currently a withdrawal fee of about 15%. For example, if I have $2,000 in PayPal, after fees I receive $1,700 in my bank account at Bank of Palestine.
4/15

[mohshbair@mastodon.social]

Life here is extremely difficult. Most banks have been closed since the start of the war, and the Palestinian Monetary Authority and Ministry of Finance in Ramallah wanted to send new banknotes to Gaza, but Israel blocked it, aiming to create a cash crisis.
9/15

[mohshbair@mastodon.social]

If you take it as a bank balance, it can be about $80. Overall, the effective withdrawal cost can be up to 38% (it was closer to 50% about a month ago).
8/15

[mohshbair@mastodon.social]

Two years ago, a lot of new banknotes entered Gaza, and those are the bills we mostly use in the market. Over time, the bills we have now have become worn out and less usable.
10/15

[mohshbair@mastodon.social]

Many merchants here only accept bills that are clean, new, and in good condition. Old or damaged bills are often refused. For example, I had a 20-shekel bill, an old one, and I tried to buy something. The seller immediately returned it to me.
11/15

[mohshbair@mastodon.social]

I’m going to send you pictures of a 20-shekel note so you can see the difference between the old bills we struggle with now and the newer bills. It’s a small example, but it shows one of the daily difficulties we face here.
13/15

[mohshbair@mastodon.social]

I walked around the market trying to use it, but no one would accept it.

I went back home frustrated and angry because that 20-shekel note was basically useless. 😅
12/15

[mohshbair@mastodon.social]

I hope this helps explain the situation. If you want more details, I’m happy to clarify further.
15/15

[mohshbair@mastodon.social]

So, to withdraw or spend money, I have to work through these limited channels, and sometimes it only works if the campaign has significant amounts raised, e.g., in the thousands of USD.
14/15

[mohshbair@mastodon.social]

If you can afford to donate, please send money to my Chuffed campaign, or directly to my PayPal account.
Without your precious help, I’m not sure I’ll still be alive in a few days.

Love ✌️

🔗 https://chuffed.org/project/mohshbairgaza

🔗 (22 October: I don’t use PayPal anymore)

[katzenberger@tldr.nettime.org]

@mohshbair

How many of these local bank offices still exist? If people don't have one of them near or if it's too dangerous to get there, how do they turn donations into cash?

[mohshbair@mastodon.social]

@katzenberger
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[mohshbair@mastodon.social]

@katzenberger Bank branches are closed but local exchange offices are still being operated. They’re 2 different things.

The fees are incredibly high though.

[mohshbair@mastodon.social]

@katzenberger
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