Israel’s Gaza blockade continues to suffocate daily life
Israel must end its suffocating blockade of the Gaza Strip, which leaves more than 1.4 million Palestinians cut off from the outside world and struggling with desperate poverty, Amnesty International said one year on from the end of Israel’s military offensive in Gaza.
Amnesty International’s briefing paper Suffocating: The Gaza Strip under Israeli blockade gathers testimony from people still struggling to rebuild their lives following Operation “Cast Lead”, which killed around 1,400 Palestinians and injured thousands more.
“Israel claims that the ongoing blockade of Gaza, in force since June 2007, is a response to the indiscriminate rocket attacks launched from Gaza into southern Israel by Palestinian armed groups. The reality is that the blockade does not target armed groups but rather punishes Gaza’s entire population by restricting the entry of food, medical supplies, educational equipment and building materials,” said Malcolm Smart, Middle East and North Africa Director, Amnesty International.
“The blockade constitutes collective punishment under international law and must be lifted immediately.”
As the occupying power, Israel has a duty under international law to ensure the welfare of Gaza’s inhabitants, including their rights to health, education, food and adequate housing.
During Operation “Cast Lead”, from 27 December 2008 to 18 January 2009, 13 Israelis were killed, including three civilians in southern Israel, where dozens more were injured in indiscriminate rocket attacks by Palestinian armed groups.
In Gaza, Israeli attacks damaged or destroyed civilian buildings and infrastructure, including hospitals and schools, the water and electricity systems. Thousands of Palestinian homes were destroyed or severely damaged.
An estimated 280 of the 641 schools in Gaza were damaged and 18 were destroyed. More than half of Gaza’s population is under the age of 18 and the disruption to their education, due to the damage caused during Operation “Cast Lead” and as a result of the continuing Israeli boycott, is having a devastating impact.
Hospitals have also been badly affected by the military offensive and the blockade. Trucks of medical aid provided by the World Health Organization have been repeatedly refused entry to Gaza without explanation by Israeli officials.
Patients with serious medical conditions that cannot be treated in Gaza continue to be prevented or delayed from leaving Gaza by the Israeli authorities – since the closure of crossings leading into and out of Gaza, patients have been made to apply for permits, but these permits are frequently denied. On 1 November 2009, Samir al-Nadim, a father of three children, died after his exit from Gaza for a heart operation was delayed by 22 days.
Amnesty International spoke to a number of families whose homes were destroyed in the Israeli military operation and one year on are still living in temporary accommodation.
Mohammed and Halima Mslih and their four young children fled their home in the village of Juhor al-Dik, south of Gaza City, during the conflict one year ago. While they were away their home was demolished by Israeli army bulldozers.
“When we returned everything was broken. People were giving us food because we had nothing,” said Mohammed Mslih.
Six months after the ceasefire the family was still living in a flimsy nylon tent and they have only now been able to construct a simple permanent home. The family fear, however, that continuing Israeli military incursions may destroy the little they have left.
Unemployment in Gaza is spiralling as those businesses that remain struggle to survive under the blockade. In December 2009, the UN reported that unemployment in Gaza was over 40 per cent.
“The blockade is strangling virtually every aspect of life for Gaza’s population, more than half of whom are children. The increasing isolation and suffering of the people of Gaza cannot be allowed to continue. The Israeli government must comply with binding legal obligation, as the occupying power, to lift the blockade without further delay,” said Malcolm Smart.
Download this paper, Suffocating: the Gaza Strip under Israeli blockade (pdf 250KB)
Comments
David | Posted on 20 January 2010, 07:55PM | Report comment
AI and other organisations such as Human Rights Watch are slowly but surely sacrificing their reputations as impartial humanitarian organisations with partisan utterings such as this. Aside from its uncollaborated assertions, factual errors, mis-statements and strategic omissions the piece simply contributes nothing to the solution to this conflict which simply must be the abandonment by delusional elements of Palestinian society of their pipedream of destroying Israel. Israel does not occupy Gaza and there is only one Israeli there - Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier kidnapped years ago and held since then with no contact by any humanitarian or other parties. He is the only person in Gaza AI should be concerning themselves with as the rest of the population elected Hamas to represent them and are simply reaping what they sowed when they chose relics from the 14th century to lead them.
Dina | Posted on 20 January 2010, 01:21PM | Report comment
Why is it Israel’s responsibility to look after Gaza? No country has any obligation to have open borders, and yet Israel allows millions of tons of aid into Gaza, even knowing much will be used by a terrorist organisation intent on it’s destruction. Gaza has other borders, and yet Egypt’s blockade is not the subject (or even mentioned) here.
Israel left Gaza to enable them to create their own state. Any help they give now should be credited, but not expected.
Steve Lieblich | Posted on 20 January 2010, 11:27AM | Report comment
I must agree with Sandy and with Justus Reid Weiner and Dimitri Teresh, the authors of paper entitled “Amnesia International: Forgetting the Real Culprits in Gaza”.
AI, if it wants to be recognised as a truly humanitarian nation should focus on humanitarian issues and stop getting involved in a b latantly partisan way in acrimonious international disputes.
IN PARTICULAR it should desist from supporting murderous, terrorist organisations like Hamas.
Steve Lieblich | Posted on 20 January 2010, 11:21AM | Report comment
From “Amnesia International: Forgetting the Real Culprits in Gaza” [www.globallawforum.org/ViewBlog.aspx?ArticleId=49] (continued):
...AI might be better advised to redirect its efforts to entities that are genuinely in need of humanitarian assistance and that are not terrorizing their neighbors. In fact, Gazans receive the greatest amount of international aid per capita of any entity in the world. Perhaps, nine hundred million dollars, the sum pledged to rebuild Gaza by Secretary of State Clinton, would go a long way towards alleviating the suffering of the millions who live in desperate circumstances in Haiti. The Haitians would not divert the foreign aid to launch missiles, rockets, and mortars toward the neighboring Dominican Republic.
Steve Lieblich | Posted on 20 January 2010, 11:20AM | Report comment
From “Amnesia International: Forgetting the Real Culprits in Gaza” (continued):
....AI often repeats that they desire fruitful peace efforts in the Middle East. Yet the entire briefing paper discusses the result of an inadequately addressed problem – the continual missile, rocket and mortar attacks by Hamas….and AI never once suggests how they will be addressed; rather, AI insists that lifting the sanctions that may be limiting Hamas will improve the situation. In fact, undermining peaceful attempts to ensure security will only decrease the chances for peace while increasing the likelihood of violence and confrontation. For those who don’t suffer from amnesia, the real culprit in this tragedy is the Hamas terrorist organization.
(continued…)
Steve Lieblich | Posted on 20 January 2010, 11:18AM | Report comment
From “Amnesia International: Forgetting the Real Culprits in Gaza” (continued:
AI’s briefing paper is replete with references to international law, without once pointing to any specific provision being violated….no country is obliged to open its borders. Since Israel is under no legal obligation to engage in trade of fuel or anything else with the Gaza Strip, or to maintain open borders with the Gaza Strip, it may withhold commercial items and seal its borders at its discretion ... imposition of economic sanctions on the Gaza Strip, such as withholding fuel supplies and electricity, does not involve the use of military force and is therefore a perfectly legal means of responding to Gazan attacks, despite the unfortunate effects on some Palestinian civilians.
(continued next comment)
Steve Lieblich | Posted on 20 January 2010, 11:15AM | Report comment
From “Amnesia International: Forgetting the Real Culprits in Gaza”, Justus Reid Weiner and Dimitri Teresh point out that this
AI paper ... ” (continued):
...Hamas did not conceal its religious fanaticism or the methods it intended to use if elected. The Hamas Charter is explicit about its intent to use violent means to destroy Israel ...They clearly state that there can be no compromise; “peaceful solutions and international conferences are in contradiction to the principles of the Islamic Resistance Movement.”
...AI’s repeated complaints that the import of building materials is barred by Israel neglect to acknowledge that the same cement intended to be used to rebuild schools can also be used to reinforce smuggling tunnels and military bunkers.
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Steve Lieblich | Posted on 20 January 2010, 11:13AM | Report comment
From a paper entitled “Amnesia International: Forgetting the Real Culprits in Gaza:
this AI paper ... “obscure[s] the true nature of the relationship between Israel and Gaza. ...flogging the purportedly dire humanitarian situation distorts the overall picture of Gaza and forgets the actual cause for the ...circumstances in which Gazans live.”
Predictions of an “imminent humanitarian crisis” in Gaza have been made at least as far back as 1996 ... 2000…2001, and since then annually ...How has the Gaza Strip been “on the verge” of a humanitarian crisis for in excess of ten years? ...
... in relation to the alleged perpetual “humanitarian crisis” ...
First, Gaza’s offshore gas deposits…are worth an estimated $2 billion ...
Second, the population of Gaza is comparatively healthy and well educated…Life expectancy ...literacy ......[and] infant mortality rate [are all much better than in many nations].
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Sandy | Posted on 20 January 2010, 12:44AM | Report comment
Israel is not aan ” occupying power”. It has left Gaza and not a single israeli remains there except a kidnapped one who has been kept inhumanely isloated and without even Rec Cross visits.
Gaza is ruled by brutal thugs who seized power by deadly force, including throwing their political opponents off multi-storey buildings.
Hamas has as its explicit aim the murder of Israeli civilians and the destruction of Israel.
How on earth is Amnesty promoting human rights by supporting such murderous terrorists?