Gaza's unemployment rate highest in the world

Years of turmoil have left one region of the world in dire economic condition.

According to a recent World Bank report, Gaza in the Middle East has the highest unemployment rate in the world at 43 percent and an even higher youth unemployment rate which exceeded 60 percent at the end of last year.

Overall, the group estimates that the area's GDP is about a quarter the size it would have been without the blockades and skirmishes.

As a result, 39 percent of the population lives under the poverty line and almost 80 percent sustain themselves with some government assistance.

Options are extremely limited for the population of approximately 1.8 million people who lack freedom of movement beyond the territory's nearly 7 mile by 32 mile borders.

Part of the problem stems from Israel's continuing military exchanges with Hamas, an Islamic group viewed as terrorists, which has controlled Gaza for several years.

Also affecting the economy are the blockades by Israel and Egypt's closure of tunnels used for smuggling goods across their border.

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