Israel allows foreign trade exports to Gaza, one month after agreement | Gaza News

Israel has allowed a temporary resumption of exports from the Gaza Strip on the so-called “legal” line, a month after the agreement halted an 11-day outbreak on the Strip.

“Following the security review, the idea has been made for the first time since the end of the (war) to help… (sell less yields from the Gaza Strip,” COGAT, a branch of the Israeli Ministry of Defense, said on Monday.

COGAT said this was approved by the government of Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and “only took security stability”.

Palestinian officials, who did not want to be named because they were not allowed to speak to reporters, said 11 uniforms were sent via Karm Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom) for the first crossing in 40 days. On Sunday, Israel said it would allow fewer shipments from Gaza.

The reduction also included the resumption of correspondence in and out of Gaza, according to Saleh al-Zeq, a member of the Palestinian Authority’s liaison committee. Thousands of passports and documents have been delayed since the war between Israel and Hamas, the Palestinian Authority that controls Gaza, began on May 10.

However, some Israeli sanctions are still in place and are destroying various parts of Gaza.

On Monday, Pepsi’s bottle factory said it was closing and firing 250 people because the equipment they needed to keep working was not available. Instead, the company will import pre-manufactured products from its factory in the West Bank.

“These devices are not allowed. We have been waiting for them for 60 days, ”said Hammam Alyazji, the factory’s development manager. The materials include carbon dioxide and water.

Resumption of export does not include fishing, says Nezzar Ayyash of the fishery union. He said Israel had reduced its fishing volume by half, and placed it at a distance of 11 kilometers instead of 20 miles (37 km), according to an agreement in the Oslo Accords.

“This is bad for the lives of fishermen; Buying capacity is limited in Gaza and fishermen pay for fuel, ”he said.

Other restrictions include limits on the number of patients who can receive treatment in Israel or the West Bank.

The leader of the Hamas Palestinian political party in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar, speaks to reporters at a press conference in Gaza City on June 21, 2021. [Mohammed Abed/ AFP]

‘There are no solutions to mankind’s problems’

Following a meeting with United Nations envoys, Hamas leader in Gaza, Yahya al-Sinwar, said the reduction in sanctions on Israel was insufficient and did nothing to change the situation in Gaza, indicating that Israel continues to block international aid, as well as critical oil supplies. .

“The meeting was bad, it wasn’t good at all,” he told reporters.

“They are listening to us closely, but there is no indication that there are any plans to address the social problems in Gaza,” added Sinwar.

He further added that Israel had “disrupted” Hamas in exchange for lifting sanctions.

Sinwar was apparently referring to Israel’s view that a major change in Gaza’s reliance on Hamas would liberate two Israelis and the bodies of the two soldiers they held. Sinwar said he had told a UN envoy, Tor Wennesland, that Hamas “would not accept this”.

Israel is monitoring the crossing of Gaza, with the help of neighboring Egypt, under threat from Hamas. Israeli sanctions intensified in May, which banned foreign trade.

Sinwar also accused Israel of blocking aid to Qatar, which in recent years has halted the $ 100 million rebuilding operation in Gaza.

“It seems that the regions (Israel) do not understand our message, and that perhaps we need to do what most people are refusing to do to force us to do the job,” Sinwar said.

The office of Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has not commented on Sinwar’s remarks.

At a memorial service on Sunday for Israeli soldiers killed in the 2014 Gaza war, Bennett, who swore last week and replaced Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said Israel would not allow a resumption of hostilities.

“(We will not tolerate) even a few rockets. We do not show resilience or self-defense in divided groups,” he said, referring to the threats already made by the military except Hamas.

Our patience has come to an end. ”

Egypt and the United Nations called for intervention last week after Israeli warplanes attacked the Gaza Strip, protesting the end of the war.

The war killed 257 Palestinians, including 66 children. Thirteen people were killed in Israel, including two children.