Is the profit realized from selling fuel at high prices - due to the closure of roads and the rise in prices in Rafah after paying a sum of money to traffic officers to facilitate passage - lawful or unlawful?

Selling to someone in dire need at a price exceeding the market value is forbidden and unlawful according to Islamic law. It is considered an act of injustice and abandonment towards those in distress. Some jurists have even deemed it usury (riba) or a void sale. What some merchants in Gaza have done, selling goods to those under siege at exorbitant prices, falls within this category. These merchants must donate the excess profit beyond the usual gain to those under siege as expiation for their actions. Selling to a merchant, knowing that he will sell to the distressed at inflated prices, does not absolve one of responsibility.