The Palestinian High Judiciary Council in Gaza said on Sunday that the marriage rate decreased by 8 per cent in 2016, while divorces increased by 2 per cent over the figures for 2015. Poverty and unemployment have been blamed for the social changes.
According to the Head of the High Judiciary Council, Shaikh Hassan Al-Jojo, the courts in Gaza registered 19,248 marriages last year, compared to 20,778 in 2015. The number of divorces in 2016 was 3,188 compared to 2,627 the previous year.
Al-Jojo blamed the changes on poverty and unemployment in the Gaza Strip, as well as to the deterioration of the political situation which leads to families fearing an unstable future. According to UN statistics, 80 per cent of the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip are dependent on international aid.