Category: Associated Press

The remains of his family’s house in Gaza

American Jews, Associated Press, Gaza, Gaza Strip, Gaza War, Hawara, Israel, Israel Defense Forces, Palestinian people, United States Department of State, West Bank, World
A Palestinian boy sleeps on a mattress inside the remains of his family’s house.
A sand storm approached the Gaza Strip, and the first thing that came to my mind was the people living in the remains of the houses that were destroyed by Israeli shelling during the 50-day war in 2014. The densely-populated Shejaiya neighbourhood was almost empty, like a ghost town. The picture of the boy asleep there shows how difficult life is for these people. No one can imagine a boy could sleep in these conditions. But it’s normal for the children now.’

Palestinian protesters look at Israeli troops during clashes

Associated Press, Hebron, Islamic–Jewish relations, Israel, Israel Defense Forces, Israel Police, Jerusalem, Ramallah, West Bank, World

Palestinian protesters look at Israeli troops during clashes following a protest demanding Israel return the bodies of Palestinians who allegedly stabbed Israelis, in the West Bank city of Hebron.

Gaza – 1.8 million people have no access to the outside world

Airstrike, Associated Press, Blockade of the Gaza Strip, East Jerusalem, Gaza, Gaza Children, Gaza Strip, Israel, Israel Defense Forces, Rocket, World
The International Crisis Group’s latest report on Gaza highlights the effective absence of a government running Gaza – meaning that its economy is a wreck and most of its 1.8 million people have no access to the outside world. Israel has slightly eased its blockade since the ceasefire of last August, alleviating but not eliminating pressure.

UN report warns Gaza may become ‘uninhabitable by 2020

Academic term, Associated Press, Gaza, Gaza Strip, Hamas, Israel, Palestinian refugee, Palestinian territories, United Nations, World
Gaza could be “uninhabitable” in less than five years if current economic trends continue, according to a new United Nations report. The report released on Tuesday by the UN Conference on Trade and Development points to the eight-year economic blockade of Gaza as well as the three wars there over the past six years.
Last year’s Israeli war on Gaza displaced half a million people and left parts of the strip destroyed. 
The war “has effectively eliminated what was left of the middle class, sending almost all of the population into destitution and dependence on international humanitarian aid,” the new report says. 
Gaza’s GDP dropped 15 percent last year, and unemployment reached a record high of 44 percent. Seventy-two percent of households are food insecure.
The wars have shattered Gaza’s ability to export and produce for the domestic market and left no time for reconstruction, the report says. It notes that Gaza’s “de-development,” or development in reverse, has been accelerated. Israel and Egypt have maintained a blockade of Gaza since the armed group Hamas seized control of the territory in 2007.
“The humanitarian catastrophe is man-made. The answer is only through are man-made policies,” Hamdi Shaqqura, the deputy director of the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights, told Al Jazeera. Shaqqura said that donations from the international community have been “very useful”, but need to be coupled with “real political policies” to effectively help Gaza.
“The answer to Gaza is not dumping money into it. We have great potentials in Gaza for economic policies. What hinder economic development is merely Israeli policies, the closure (blockade) and other restrictions imposed on Gaza.”Gaza remains unders siege a decade after Israel’s withdrawal
A year after the war on Gaza, less than 2 percent of the required materials have been allowed into Gaza.
The report comes as Egyptian military bulldozers press ahead with a project that effectively would fill Egypt’s border with the Gaza Strip with water and flood the last remaining cross-border underground smuggling tunnels, which have brought both commercial items and weapons into Gaza.
The report calls the economic prospects for 2015 for the Palestinian territories “bleak” because of the unstable political situation, reduced aid and the slow pace of reconstruction.
Source: Al Jazeera and agencies

Israeli military brutality viewed more than 2 million times on Facebook

Associated Press, East Jerusalem, Facebook, Gaza, Israel, Israel Defense Forces, Palestinian people, Palestinian women, Protest, West Bank, World
In this photo, Palestinian women and youth scuffle with an Israeli soldier trying to arrest a 12-year-old boy during a protest near the West Bank village of Nebi Saleh. A video showing the incident has been viewed more than 2 million times on Facebook, and shined a light on Israeli military policies in the territory. The Israeli military said Sunday that a “violent riot” broke out at the protest and that it tried to detain the boy because he was hurling rocks. The video sparked accusations from critics that Israel is too heavy-handed in its confrontations with Palestinian protesters, especially minors.