by Daniel Siryoti
Is the Israeli-Egyptian "siege" on the Gaza Strip the main reason for the serious humanitarian crisis there?
Defense
Minister Avigdor Lieberman announced on Saturday that he was stopping
the newly-resumed supply of fuel and gas to the Gaza Strip, and added:
"As long as the violence on the Gaza border does not come to a complete
halt, including sending burning balloons over the fence and setting
tires on fire near Israeli communities located near Gaza, Israel will
not be resupplying the Gaza Strip with fuel or gas."
On the other hand, Hamas leaders claim
daily that the "marches of return on the border will end only when the
siege on Gaza is lifted." On Saturday, head of Hamas' political bureau
Ismail Haniyeh even declared that "We appreciate the efforts to throw
off the siege, but we will not accept partial solutions. The martyrs'
blood will not be spilled in vain. The marches will not end until the
siege on Gaza is thrown off."
The Hamas and Palestinian Authority
leadership, like many in Israel and throughout the world, argue that
steps Israel and Egypt have taken against the Hamas regime in Gaza are
causing immense suffering to the million and a half residents of Gaza,
who they say are "living in the largest prison in the world." One of the
harshest critics of Israel's policy is Turkish President Recep Tayyip
Erdogan, who constantly repeats that "not so much as a crate of tomatoes
can be shipped to Gaza without Israel's approval."
Is the Israeli-Egyptian "siege" on the Gaza
Strip the main reason for the serious humanitarian crisis there? The
answer is an unequivocal "no," despite the repeated declarations by the
Palestinians and their supporters that Israel and Egypt are choking the
population.
The facts show a different picture. There
is neither a siege nor a blockade in place on Gaza, other than the
limitations demanded when dealing with a terrorist organization that has
been in charge of Gaza and its population since 2007, when it seized
power in a violent coup in which it expelled and executed Fatah
officials and their families.
After the putsch, the Hamas regime
announced that it was tossing out all the security agreements and
addenda to them that had been signed between Israel and the PA regarding
Gaza. In response, the Israeli government declared Gaza "hostile
territory." Israel put major limitations on the shipment of goods into
Gaza; barred Palestinians from moving between Gaza and the PA as well as
trade between the West Bank and Gaza. Israel also shut down all
maritime entrance to and exits from Gaza and declared severe
restrictions on its legal fishing areas. However, despite declaring Gaza
"hostile territory"; despite the military conflicts Israel waged
against Hamas and the other armed factions in Gaza; despite the
unceasing terrorist activity waged from Gaza; Israel always took care to
allow 100 trucks carrying goods and fuel into Gaza every day.
Meanwhile, the Egyptians are also playing a
part in the supposed "siege" on Gaza. Until the events of the Arab
Spring of 2011 and the revolts in Egypt that ousted first former
President Hosni Mubarak and then Muslim Brotherhood-elected President
Mohammad Morsi from power, Egypt allowed goods and people to pass
through the Rafah crossing. But as the smuggling tunnels at Rafah
multiplied and the Sinai-based terrorist groups gained in strength – not
to mention the 2008 incident in which operatives from Hamas' military
branch, the Izzedine al-Qassam Brigades – breached the Rafah border
fence and hundreds of thousands of Palestinians streamed into Egypt –
the Egyptians decided to close the Rafah crossing entirely to the
movement of people and goods.
The events of the Mami Marmora flotilla in
May 2010, in which Israeli commandos boarded a Turkish vessel carrying
pro-Palestinian activists and killed several in the ensuing violence,
prompted Israel to change its maritime blockade policy and make it
significantly easier to move people and goods into and out of Gaza. In
effect, since January 2011, Israel has allowed hundreds of trucks into
Gaza each day. These trucks are carrying all sorts of goods, other than
construction materials and items classed as dual-use, such as certain
types of fertilizer that can be used to make bombs or ammunition,
drones, or other electronic equipment that could be used for terrorist
activity.
Israel has even allowed trade between Gaza
and the West Bank, as well as exports of various items from Gaza to
Israel and other countries. The only policy that has remained in place
is the ban on Gazans entering Israel, other than humanitarian and
specially approved cases. It should be noted that the only goods
crossing between Israel and Gaza is Kerem Shalom, now that Rafah is
being opened only occasionally by the Egyptians.
Who is calling that a siege?
Daniel Siryoti
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/opinions/the-facts-belie-the-claims-of-siege/
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