Gaza rubble made into wind turbines for power
A WIND turbine created by Kamal Al-Dabary using scraps, generates electricity at a camp for displaced Palestinians in Khan Yunis, in the southern Gaza Strip on 3 November 2026.
EYAD BABA/AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
KHAN YUNIS, Palestinian Territories (AFP) — Above a maze of tents in a crowded displacement camp in Gaza, homemade wind turbines made from scrap metal and salvaged debris spin in the sea breeze, bringing electricity to struggling Palestinians.
In the southern Khan Yunis camp, Kamal Al-Dabary, a former engineering student, has put his skills to work for families who, like most Gazans, live in displacement with no direct access to the tiny territory’s shattered power grid.
According to the World Bank, more than 90 percent of Gaza’s power generation and distribution capacity was destroyed in April 2026, much of it in Israeli strikes that devastated homes and infrastructure.
Sitting on the ground, Dabary tinkered with electrical wires, metal parts and basic tools on a plastic table.
After carefully twisting cables together and testing them with a multimeter, a small bulb flickered on, then another, signaling that the current was flowing.
“When solar panels were still relatively affordable, we bought one and kept moving it around to follow the sun,” the 60-year-old, displaced by the fighting between Israel and Hamas, told Agence France-Presse.
The war was triggered by the Palestinian Islamist movement’s deadly 7 October 2023 attack on Israel.
But after three years of war, prices have soared as aid and commercial supplies trickled into Gaza through crossings tightly controlled by Israel.
A single solar panel now costs at least 15,000 shekels (nearly $5,000), putting it out of reach for most Gazans, Dabary said.
‘Changed everything’
“We haven’t had work or income for three years,” he added.
“That’s when the idea of a wind turbine came to mind. Why not harness the wind? So we salvaged parts from the rubble.”
The turbines are built from scooter motors and old water tanks cut into blades.
As the wind turns the blades, they drive a motor that generates electricity. The power then passes through circuits assembled from parts recovered from destroyed homes before being stored in batteries.
This provides enough electricity to charge phones and run lights, fans and even electric razors, small comforts that have become a luxury for families still living in tents and shelters.