Gaza Unsilenced Read online

  “So far we have only managed to export 70 tons of strawberries,” said al-Shafi. “This is not enough.”

  The Electronic Intifada, February 3, 2015, http://bit.ly/1zyS1eD

  Destroyed Factories in Gaza: An Attempt to Rise Again

  Palestine Information Center

  With high spirit, Jamal Abu al-Omarin is racing against time to recover his pickle factory, which was destroyed by Israel during its last war on Gaza in summer 2014. The destruction reflects the bitter reality that faces the industrial and the economic sectors in Palestine because of the endless Israeli crimes.

  Complete Destruction

  Abu al-Omarin told the Palestinian Information Center (PIC): “Israel has destroyed parts of the factory using bulldozers, and the other parts were destroyed by rockets and missiles.”

  He added: “It was a double loss; they destroyed the factory and about 150 tons of pickles, and we lost the pickle season.” He continued: “In spite of the loss, which is estimated to be more than 400,000 dollars, we are trying to resume the work with the least capabilities we have, so as to meet the demands of our clients.”

  Al-Telbani...Heavy Losses

  For his part, Muhammad al-Telbani, the director of al-Awda Factories Co., talked about the huge loss he suffered as a result of the repeated Israeli artillery shelling on his factory.

  He said that his loss is estimated to be more than 25 million dollars. He clarified that all production lines and main sections were “totally destroyed” along with warehouses full of ready-to-distribute products. The implications of such destruction were not limited to the factories’ owners, as about 450 workers were discharged after all main production lines stopped.

  Wa’el al-Wadeya, whose factory was destroyed by the Israeli occupation forces (IOF), stressed that his losses are about 7 million dollars. He noted that his destroyed factory contained scores of different production lines like potato chips, juices, sweets and biscuits.

  Cumulative Effects

  According to the General Union of Palestinian Industries, the IOF destroyed 450 economic and industrial establishments completely, and 600 partially, causing an estimated loss of a billion dollars.

  Ali al-Hayek, the chairman of the union, pointed out that factories that belong to different important sectors such as food, construction, chemicals, and plastic industries were destroyed.

  He underlined that such targeting destroyed what was left of the Palestinian economy after the last two wars and the 8-year siege. He also stressed the importance of compensating the private sector as soon as possible; since these factories were reconstructed with the help of loans.

  Owners of the affected factories and establishments are demanding that the Palestinian government and international institutions to officially support them in order to reconstruct these factories and fulfill their developmental role.

  Palestine Information Center, November 16, 2014, http://bit.ly/1yvfs6l

  Gaza Fishermen “in God’s Hands”

  Patrick O. Strickland and Ezz Al Zanoon

  Editors’ note: Here we reprint only the essay part of this photoessay; the stunning photographs were omitted for space considerations, but can be found at the link provided at the end of this essay.

  Hundreds of mourners gathered outside of al-Shifa hospital to protest the killing of Tawfiq Abu Reyaleh, a 34-year-old fisherman shot by the Israeli navy just hours before.

  Along with his shipmates on the overnight shift, the late father of four was struck by a bullet when Israeli forces opened fire on their boat on March 7, as they sailed within the six-nautical mile limit that Israel has imposed on Gaza’s sea vessels, according to the fishermen. Abu Reyaleh was survived by his wife and four children, who live in northern Gaza.

  “We just want to be like fishermen everywhere,” his mourning cousin, Emad al-Sayeed Abu Reyala, told the Electronic Intifada. “We are not asking for so much; just a basic right. Our rights are not protected—not by the world, not by the Arab countries. Our lives are in God’s hands.”

  “My cousin wasn’t the first fisherman to be shot by the Israelis and he won’t be the last. There isn’t a fisherman in Gaza who hasn’t been shot at,” Emad said, adding that his son was injured when Israeli naval forces shot him in December. “If there the world has a conscience, it will stop these crimes,” he said.

  Since a ceasefire ended Israel’s 51 days of intensive bombing in late August, Palestinian fishermen in Gaza say they have only been allowed to access an area within six nautical miles off the coast. Yet, according to the 1993 Oslo accords, fishermen should be allowed to sail up to twenty nautical miles offshore. Those who go near that boundary line are likely to be arrested or shot at by Israeli naval forces.

  Israel has long tightened restrictions on Palestinian fishermen.

  “Over the years, the Israeli military gradually reduced this range, severely damaging the livelihood of thousands of families and the availability of this basic and inexpensive food in the markets, which had served as a significant nutritional source,” according to B’Tselem, an Israeli human rights group.

  Abdelmuti Ibrahim al-Habil has fished up and down the Gaza Strip’s coast for more than a quarter century. “I started working as a fisherman with my father when I was just fifteen years old,” he told the Electronic Intifada.

  His five sons, all in their twenties, work as fishermen with him. As he stands on the shore near Gaza City’s port, they work on the boat’s stalled motor behind him. After several minutes, the motor finally fires up and they clap and laugh.

  “They’ve been working on fixing the boat for six weeks,” al-Habil said, adding that the boat was nearly destroyed when Israeli naval forces sunk it with gunfire on January 26.

  Like all Palestinian fishermen in Gaza, al-Habil has long suffered Israeli restrictions and attacks. But he never imagined that Israeli forces would go as far as to sink the boat.

  “They arrested my [five] kids,” he said, recalling that they were taken to Ashdod, a port city in the south of present-day Israel. “For two days, we had no idea where they were. We didn’t know if they died when the boat went under.”

  After Israeli intelligence and military officers interrogated them for forty-eight hours, al-Habil’s sons were dropped off at the Erez crossing between Gaza and Israel.

  According to the United Nations monitoring group OCHA, Israeli forces fired live ammunition at Palestinian fishermen at least seventeen times between January 27 and February 9.

  In the first half of 2014, before the summer war in Gaza, Israeli naval forces fired at Palestinian fishermen in the six mile nautical zone at least 177 times, “nearly as much as in all of 2013,” according to the humanitarian charity Oxfam.

  Hajj Rajab, 81, has fished since he was a teenager.

  “My father taught me to fish. I taught my children and grandchildren how to finish. I’ve worked here many years,” he told the Electronic Intifada. “It used to be good work. Not anymore.”

  Rajab explained that Israeli shelling targeted dozens of fishermen’s storage areas, including his own, last summer.

  “They destroyed everything,” he said. “They destroyed us...the fishermen.” Nonetheless, he continues to go out to sea each day. “There aren’t any other choices for fishermen. Most of us have done this our whole lives.”

  The economic impact of Israel’s restrictions has been disastrous for the fishermen.

  “Unfortunately, as you see now, they only allow us to reach up to six miles, and sometimes it’s only three,” Mahmoud al-Hissi, a twenty-year-old father, told the Electronic Intifada.

  “After six miles, there are rocks and reef on the ocean floor—that’s where the real fish are,” al-Hissi said. “We could go out and fish for the morning and make money, instead of heading out for 24-hour shifts and barely breaking even.”

  The fishermen work for a portion of the catch, which they sell in the market after returning to shore, al-Hissi explained. “I sometimes work for 24 hours and then o
nly profit 75 shekels [approximately $19],” he said. “But recently it’s been less because there just aren’t any fish.”

  Ahmad al-Hissi, Mahmoud’s cousin, explained that fishing has become a dangerous profession in recent years.

  “If we stay about a kilometer from the six mile marker, we’re fine,” he told the Electronic Intifada. “But if we get any closer, they’ll [the Israeli navy] make problems for us.”

  Shukri, Ahmad and Mahmoud’s shipmate, said that they would be able to make a decent living if they weren’t restricted to such a small and overfished space.

  “If we could just get out to about nine nautical miles, we’d be rich men,” he said.

  The Electronic Intifada, March 31, 2015, http://bit.ly/19Hg1na.

  Gaza’s Economy Shattered by Israeli Siege

  Rosa Schiano

  A recent report by the Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture in Gaza says the Israeli authorities have closed Karem Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom) checkpoint, the Gaza Strip’s only commercial crossing, for 150 days, 41 percent of working days, during 2013. The report points out that the continued closure of the commercial crossing constitutes a violation of the ceasefire agreements reached in November 2012 after the Israeli “Operation Pillar of Defense” military offensive. Normally Israel keeps the commercial crossing open 22 days per month, says the report, closing it on Fridays and Saturdays. The crossing was closed also during the Jewish holidays for “security reasons.” According to the report, in 2013, 55,833 truckloads of goods entered Gaza, 1,578 fewer than in 2012. Israel allowed the export of 187 truckloads of goods from the Gaza Strip to European markets, compared to 234 truckloads, mostly agricultural products, in 2012.

  The report also describes the impact of the Egyptian closure of the tunnels since July 2013. This closure caused huge economic losses over the past six months as a direct result of the interruption of economic activities and a fall in production, resulting in a decline of 60 percent of gross domestic product. Unemployment exceeded 39 percent at the end of 2013.

  The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights’ report on the Gaza Strip’s crossings from November 1-30, 2013, documents the impact of the ongoing Israeli siege imposed on Palestinians, affecting their economy and social condition. While Israel claims to have eased the blockade, the Gaza Strip has a lack of services, fuel and building materials. According to PCHR’s statistics, the materials Israel has allowed to enter do not meet the needs of Gaza Strip’s population. In November, Israel closed Karem Abu Salem crossing for ten days, 30.3 percent of the total period. Most imports are consumable. The entry of various raw materials continues to be prohibited, with the exception of very limited types imported under complicated procedures.

  Israel has continued to impose a near-total ban on exports to markets in the West Bank, Israel and other countries, excluding limited amounts of agricultural products. Exceptionally, during the month of November, Israel allowed the exportation of 20 truckloads carrying agricultural products, including mints, garlic, basil, strawberries and flowers.

  Here we come to a crucial point. Israel allows minimum exports of Palestinian products only to European and non-European markets, not to the West Bank. Why does Israel not allow Palestinians from Gaza to market their products in the West Bank, within Palestine?

  It appears that on the one hand, this practice is part of the collective punishment of the blockade, which aims to not allow any economic growth in the Gaza Strip. On the other hand, Israel wants to protect its own market and sell its product in the occupied territories.

  “We face many difficulties, mainly due to the closure of the crossing,” a farmer in Beit Lahiya, in the northern Gaza Strip, said. “Generally exports take place twice a week. Sometimes we had to freeze strawberries, due to the closure. There are no exports to the West Bank. They are not allowed.” The use of the term “export” to refer to the marketing of Gaza products in the West Bank, as if speaking about two different countries, shows the division caused by the barriers of the occupation and its practices that have separated a population. “There is no international law in Gaza,” the farmer said. The farmers have to face not only the expenses of transportation, but also the costs of labor and the packaging. According to another farmer in Beit Lahiya, a 2.5 kilogram crate for strawberries costs 12 shekels, about 3 euros. They receive 25 shekels, or 5.25 euros, then earn 13 [shekels] in profit.

  “In 1967, Beit Lahiya has begun to grow strawberries,” Abu Sami, a farmer in Beit Lahiya, said. “Here, before the arrival of the Palestinian Authority, we marketed our products as Israeli products through the Israeli company Agrexco. As Israeli products, not Palestinian products. Subsequently, the European countries called on Israel to allow the Palestinians to market their products as Palestinian and without taxes. Here we export many kinds of agricultural products such as beans, green zucchini, strawberries, and many kinds of vegetables. We focus on the cash crop and flowers. After the siege, since 2006–2007, Israel closed the crossings and we could not export anymore. The European Union has called on Israel to allow the Palestinians to export their crops as Palestinian crops, but we should sell our products through Israeli companies.” He showed the cardboard box used to export strawberries, on which was printed the brand name of the Palestinian cooperative and the logo of the Israeli company Arava Export Growers.

  “The Paris Agreement has tied the Palestinian economy to the Israeli economy,” Abu Sami continued. “Most Palestinian products go to Europe, and some to Russia. We asked to sell our products in the West Bank, but the Israeli authorities have refused. They told us, ‘this is a political decision.’”

  Israeli companies also receive 6 percent from the exports of Palestinian products. “The farmers here have lost a lot,” Abu Sami said. “Before 2005, we were planting approximately 2,500 dunums. Now it’s only 700. We started planting herbs in Khan Yunis and Rafah, green pepper, cherry tomato. At this time, the cost of strawberries in Europe is too low. We stopped the exports.” There will be meetings in the coming days, and the farmers will decide what to over the next few weeks. The cost of material is high. Farmers cannot earn anything from the exports allowed to Europe. The more profitable market in the West Bank is closed to them.

  The Paris Protocol, an agreement on economic relations between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization, was signed on April 29, 1994, as part of the Oslo Agreements. It has made the Palestinian economy a prisoner of Israel, in both the productive sector and the trade of goods. Imports and exports are under complete control of Israel, which determines quantity, documents, customs, taxes, and time.

  Due to the ban on exports, the economic growth of the Gaza Strip is even more difficult. The economic growth could be possible not only with the resumption of exports to foreign markets, but especially through economic and trade exchanges with the West Bank.

  International Solidarity Movement, January 15, 2014, http://bit.ly/1GI7mhC

  The Great Game in the Holy Land: How Gazan Natural Gas Became the Epicenter of an International Power Struggle

  Michael Schwartz

  Guess what? Almost all the current wars, uprisings, and other conflicts in the Middle East are connected by a single thread, which is also a threat: these conflicts are part of an increasingly frenzied competition to find, extract, and market fossil fuels whose future consumption is guaranteed to lead to a set of cataclysmic environmental crises.

  Amid the many fossil-fueled conflicts in the region, one of them, packed with threats, large and small, has been largely overlooked, and Israel is at its epicenter. Its origins can be traced back to the early 1990s when Israeli and Palestinian leaders began sparring over rumored natural gas deposits in the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of Gaza. In the ensuing decades, it has grown into a many-fronted conflict involving several armies and three navies. In the process, it has already inflicted mind-boggling misery on tens of thousands of Palestinians, and it threatens to add future layers of misery to the lives of people in Syria, Lebanon, an
d Cyprus. Eventually, it might even immiserate Israelis.

  Resource wars are, of course, nothing new. Virtually the entire history of Western colonialism and post-World War II globalization has been animated by the effort to find and market the raw materials needed to build or maintain industrial capitalism. This includes Israel’s expansion into, and appropriation of, Palestinian lands. But fossil fuels only moved to center stage in the Israeli-Palestinian relationship in the 1990s, and that initially circumscribed conflict only spread to include Syria, Lebanon, Cyprus, Turkey, and Russia after 2010.

  The Poisonous History of Gazan Natural Gas

  Back in 1993, when Israel and the Palestinian Authority (PA) signed the Oslo Accords that were supposed to end the Israeli occupation of Gaza and the West Bank and create a sovereign state, nobody was thinking much about Gaza’s coastline. As a result, Israel agreed that the newly created PA would fully control its territorial waters, even though the Israeli navy was still patrolling the area. Rumored natural gas deposits there mattered little to anyone, because prices were then so low and supplies so plentiful. No wonder that the Palestinians took their time recruiting British Gas (BG)—a major player in the global natural gas sweepstakes—to find out what was actually there. Only in 2000 did the two parties even sign a modest contract to develop those by-then confirmed fields.

  BG promised to finance and manage their development, bear all the costs, and operate the resulting facilities in exchange for 90 percent of the revenues, an exploitative but typical “profit-sharing” agreement. With an already functioning natural gas industry, Egypt agreed to be the on-shore hub and transit point for the gas. The Palestinians were to receive 10 percent of the revenues (estimated at about a billion dollars in total) and were guaranteed access to enough gas to meet their needs.