Israel moves to further isolate Gazans
The country prepares to cut power to Gaza, hoping that residents will turn against Hamas.
By Joshua Mitnick | Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitorfrom the October 25, 2007 edition
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Gaza City and Tel Aviv - Ratcheting up pressure on Palestinians in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip, Israel prepared to cut electricity supplies to Gazans in retaliation for an escalation in cross-border rocket and mortar attacks by Palestinian militants.
After declaring Gaza an "enemy entity" in September, Israel has kept Gaza's borders sealed save for humanitarian foodstuffs and medicines. The policy has triggered dramatic inflation, shuttered businesses, and spurred demand for black-market goods smuggled through tunnels that were once used by gun runners and drug dealers.
"The market now takes all food that you smuggle, also spare parts and medication," says Hashem, a tunnel-owner from the border town of Rafah who spoke on the condition that his last name not be used.
Analysts say the goal of Israel's policy of isolating Gaza seems to be to pressure Gazans to turn against Hamas, which has led the area since it wrested control from the Palestinian Authority in June. Other observers warn that the pressure is likely to backfire, creating more volunteers for militant groups and stirring sympathy for Hamas.
The squeeze comes as the Palestinian Authority and Israel negotiate a joint statement on the framework of peace negotiations, a document scheduled to be a centerpiece of a regional meeting in Annapolis, Md., scheduled for late fall.
"The economy is just not functioning. People who are suffering, are being deprived of the right to work, and are dependant on religious charities are not going to become more moderate," says Sari Bashi, the executive director of Gisha, a Tel Aviv-based nonprofit that focuses on alleviating movement restrictions on Palestinians. In the four months since Hamas has taken over, Israel has allowed almost no finished goods or produce to leave the Gaza Strip. With the onset of the winter picking season for Gaza's strawberries and cherry tomatoes, millions of dollars' worth of products are expected to rot.
In order to compensate for the high price of petrol, Gazan auto mechanics are installing equipment that will allow car motors to burn cooking gas. But to say that the economy has shifted to a black market because of the tunnels would overestimate the tunnels' capacity to compensate for traffic over the Israeli border. "These are extreme conditions," says Ms. Bashi.
Israeli Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilanai told Israel Army Radio on Wednesday about plans to reduce "dramatically" – by about two-thirds – the power that is supplied to the Gaza Strip. The comments followed a day in which 10 rockets were fired from Gaza into Israel, one hitting a residential building in the frequently targeted town of Sderot.
Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev defended the sanctions, saying that because Hamas has demonstrated its ability to reduce chaos in the Gaza Strip, Israel is being less forgiving in adopting blanket sanctions.
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