4 dec 2016
Naji Sarhan, ministry of public works and housing undersecretary, stated that the Israeli occupation authority (IOA) has recently reduced quantities of construction material allowed into the Gaza Strip.
“Delaying the reconstruction in besieged Gaza is intended to increase pressure on its people,” Sarhan told the PIC reporter.
Sarhan pointed to cooperation with UNRWA in order to speed up the reconstruction process.
Reconstruction Statistics
The Palestinian official said 13,000 houses were completely destroyed while 175,000 houses were partially damaged in the Israeli war on Gaza in summer 2014.
He also pointed to the existence of a deficit in the programs made for reconstruction including the rent program, which suffers a deficit of 45 million dollars.
Partial damages
“Some citizens have received full grants, others received a down payment and others did not receive any payments as a result of insufficient funding”, the undersecretary stated.
Sarhan praised the role of donors such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Kuwait for living up to their commitments to the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip as well as some European countries such as Germany.
He, meanwhile, warned that any delay in the reconstruction process would bring about negative repercussions in the besieged enclave.
Khudari: IOA hinders reconstruction of Gaza
In the same context, MP Jamal al-Khudari, the head of the popular committee against siege, said the IOA hinders Gaza’s reconstruction process.
He said in a statement that the IOA is restricting the entry of construction materials and tightening the siege on the Strip with all possible means.
There is no real progress in the reconstruction process, the MP said, adding that 70,000 Palestinians are still homeless in Gaza.
Al-Khudari asked the donors in Cairo Conference in 2014 to meet their obligations fully, and called on the international community to pressure Israel to end its siege on Gaza in order to start a real reconstruction process.
“Delaying the reconstruction in besieged Gaza is intended to increase pressure on its people,” Sarhan told the PIC reporter.
Sarhan pointed to cooperation with UNRWA in order to speed up the reconstruction process.
Reconstruction Statistics
The Palestinian official said 13,000 houses were completely destroyed while 175,000 houses were partially damaged in the Israeli war on Gaza in summer 2014.
He also pointed to the existence of a deficit in the programs made for reconstruction including the rent program, which suffers a deficit of 45 million dollars.
Partial damages
“Some citizens have received full grants, others received a down payment and others did not receive any payments as a result of insufficient funding”, the undersecretary stated.
Sarhan praised the role of donors such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Kuwait for living up to their commitments to the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip as well as some European countries such as Germany.
He, meanwhile, warned that any delay in the reconstruction process would bring about negative repercussions in the besieged enclave.
Khudari: IOA hinders reconstruction of Gaza
In the same context, MP Jamal al-Khudari, the head of the popular committee against siege, said the IOA hinders Gaza’s reconstruction process.
He said in a statement that the IOA is restricting the entry of construction materials and tightening the siege on the Strip with all possible means.
There is no real progress in the reconstruction process, the MP said, adding that 70,000 Palestinians are still homeless in Gaza.
Al-Khudari asked the donors in Cairo Conference in 2014 to meet their obligations fully, and called on the international community to pressure Israel to end its siege on Gaza in order to start a real reconstruction process.
2 dec 2016
Aid Watch Palestine holds parallel exhibitions in the West Bank and Gaza to advocate for a just reconstruction process in the besieged coastal enclave, and assert Palestinian unity.
On Wednesday, November 23, Aid Watch Palestine (AIP) organized a photo exhibition in central Ramallah, West Bank, titled “Gaza Incomplete.” The event addressed reconstruction efforts in Gaza since the 51-day Israeli offensive against the besieged coastal enclave in the summer of 2014.
See archive IMEMC video: 09/02/14 Gaza City’s Devastated Al-Shuja’eyya Suburb
AIP is an independent Palestinian civil society initiative that stimulates and supports efforts to make international aid more accountable to Palestinians — starting with reconstruction of the Gaza Strip.
The exhibition sought to raise awareness, in the West Bank, of the severity of Gaza’s on-going humanitarian crisis since the offensive, as well as the reasons why international aid has not been successful in meaningfully slowing it. AIP hopes that doing so will change public opinion and eventually push the Palestinian and Israeli governments to change their respective – and sometimes coordinated – policies on Gaza. The event consisted of two short films and a photo exhibition.
The 2014 Israeli offensive on Gaza exacted unprecedented devastation. Israeli forces killed 2,251 Palestinians and completely destroyed 18,000 houses. It was estimated that an adequate reconstruction effort would cost $570 million and require 4 million tons of materials.
Dwindling funds for stopgap solutions
Speaking to the Alternative Information Center, AIP Media Communication Coordinator Elia Ghorbia drew attention to a primary problem hindering reconstruction efforts in Gaza: “The donor countries aren’t pledging sufficient amount of money.”
In response to the 2014 Israeli offensive, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Palestine requested a total of $570 million for reconstruction efforts. International donors then pledged millions of dollars to rehabilitate Gaza’s infrastructure. However, as of November 2016, only $195 million has been disbursed. In other words, only 34% of the total budget requested for urgent humanitarian needs was met two yeas after the offensive.
The lack of funds continues to contribute to the suffering of an entire population, leaving the 28% of Gazans who were displaced with bleak prospects of returning home. A film shown by AIP at the exhibition stated that 4,000 homes were still unrepaired from – not the 2014 offensive on Gaza – but the 2008 and 2012 Israeli attacks.
But, even if Gaza were to receive an appropriate amount of humanitarian aid to piece together the damage incurred in 2014, other obstacles persist. “We want to raise awareness not only about the suffering of people in Gaza, but also about the [Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism (GRM)] and its implications,” Ghobia added.
The GRM is a temporary agreement brokered by the United Nations (UN) between the Palestinian Authority (PA) and Israel that intends to address conflicting interests: Israel’s security concerns and the entry of essential construction materials into Gaza in light of Israel’s decade-long blockade on the coastal enclave.
The GRM dictates that the UN monitors and collects private information about Palestinian households in a database accessible to Israel. Israel then retains the power to veto which Gazan families are given permission to sell and receive building materials.
As pointed out in an AIP film at “Gaza Incomplete,” the GRM has not fulfilled its self-professed raison d’etre: only 16% of such materials have entered Gaza thus far.
Because of the paltry entry of goods, critics see the GRM as another treaty that legitimizes and reinforces the Israeli blockade whilst undermining the livelihoods of the people of Gaza due to the imposition of a strict monitoring system that only seems to further restrict the flow of goods. Moreover, 65% of purchased construction materials that do enter Gaza come from Israeli markets, thus financially propping up the Israeli economy.
Resisting the root of the problem
Maintaining that while “there are many internal problems which must be solved,” Ghorbia emphasized that the main solution to humanitarian disaster in Gaza is “to lift the blockade.”
Until then AIP will continue to encourage discussion of why international aid has failed to alleviate the affects of Israeli occupation in Gaza in such a way that both advocates for Gazans’ needs and insists upon the unity of Palestine.
In Gaza, AIP held “Gaza Incomplete” with a different aim: to initiate dialogue between the Gazan people and authorities leading reconstruction efforts, and create space for those affected to voice concerns.
Speaking of the parallel exhibitions, Ghorbia concluded, “it is important to make Israel aware that it cannot separate the West Bank and Gaza.”
via the Alternative Information Center (AIC).
Louisa Emslie is a graduate from the University of Edinburgh where she studied Arabic and Spanish Studies. She lives and works in Ramallah, Palestine.
On Wednesday, November 23, Aid Watch Palestine (AIP) organized a photo exhibition in central Ramallah, West Bank, titled “Gaza Incomplete.” The event addressed reconstruction efforts in Gaza since the 51-day Israeli offensive against the besieged coastal enclave in the summer of 2014.
See archive IMEMC video: 09/02/14 Gaza City’s Devastated Al-Shuja’eyya Suburb
AIP is an independent Palestinian civil society initiative that stimulates and supports efforts to make international aid more accountable to Palestinians — starting with reconstruction of the Gaza Strip.
The exhibition sought to raise awareness, in the West Bank, of the severity of Gaza’s on-going humanitarian crisis since the offensive, as well as the reasons why international aid has not been successful in meaningfully slowing it. AIP hopes that doing so will change public opinion and eventually push the Palestinian and Israeli governments to change their respective – and sometimes coordinated – policies on Gaza. The event consisted of two short films and a photo exhibition.
The 2014 Israeli offensive on Gaza exacted unprecedented devastation. Israeli forces killed 2,251 Palestinians and completely destroyed 18,000 houses. It was estimated that an adequate reconstruction effort would cost $570 million and require 4 million tons of materials.
Dwindling funds for stopgap solutions
Speaking to the Alternative Information Center, AIP Media Communication Coordinator Elia Ghorbia drew attention to a primary problem hindering reconstruction efforts in Gaza: “The donor countries aren’t pledging sufficient amount of money.”
In response to the 2014 Israeli offensive, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Palestine requested a total of $570 million for reconstruction efforts. International donors then pledged millions of dollars to rehabilitate Gaza’s infrastructure. However, as of November 2016, only $195 million has been disbursed. In other words, only 34% of the total budget requested for urgent humanitarian needs was met two yeas after the offensive.
The lack of funds continues to contribute to the suffering of an entire population, leaving the 28% of Gazans who were displaced with bleak prospects of returning home. A film shown by AIP at the exhibition stated that 4,000 homes were still unrepaired from – not the 2014 offensive on Gaza – but the 2008 and 2012 Israeli attacks.
But, even if Gaza were to receive an appropriate amount of humanitarian aid to piece together the damage incurred in 2014, other obstacles persist. “We want to raise awareness not only about the suffering of people in Gaza, but also about the [Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism (GRM)] and its implications,” Ghobia added.
The GRM is a temporary agreement brokered by the United Nations (UN) between the Palestinian Authority (PA) and Israel that intends to address conflicting interests: Israel’s security concerns and the entry of essential construction materials into Gaza in light of Israel’s decade-long blockade on the coastal enclave.
The GRM dictates that the UN monitors and collects private information about Palestinian households in a database accessible to Israel. Israel then retains the power to veto which Gazan families are given permission to sell and receive building materials.
As pointed out in an AIP film at “Gaza Incomplete,” the GRM has not fulfilled its self-professed raison d’etre: only 16% of such materials have entered Gaza thus far.
Because of the paltry entry of goods, critics see the GRM as another treaty that legitimizes and reinforces the Israeli blockade whilst undermining the livelihoods of the people of Gaza due to the imposition of a strict monitoring system that only seems to further restrict the flow of goods. Moreover, 65% of purchased construction materials that do enter Gaza come from Israeli markets, thus financially propping up the Israeli economy.
Resisting the root of the problem
Maintaining that while “there are many internal problems which must be solved,” Ghorbia emphasized that the main solution to humanitarian disaster in Gaza is “to lift the blockade.”
Until then AIP will continue to encourage discussion of why international aid has failed to alleviate the affects of Israeli occupation in Gaza in such a way that both advocates for Gazans’ needs and insists upon the unity of Palestine.
In Gaza, AIP held “Gaza Incomplete” with a different aim: to initiate dialogue between the Gazan people and authorities leading reconstruction efforts, and create space for those affected to voice concerns.
Speaking of the parallel exhibitions, Ghorbia concluded, “it is important to make Israel aware that it cannot separate the West Bank and Gaza.”
via the Alternative Information Center (AIC).
Louisa Emslie is a graduate from the University of Edinburgh where she studied Arabic and Spanish Studies. She lives and works in Ramallah, Palestine.
28 nov 2016
The Israeli Occupation Authorities (IOA) issued Monday afternoon stop-building orders against six Palestinian houses in Khuder town, south of Bethlehem.
According to the PIC reporter, Israeli occupation forces stormed the town in large numbers and delivered stop-building orders against a number of local houses under construction.
The Israeli forces gave the houses’ owners 20 days to appeal against the orders.
According to the PIC reporter, Israeli occupation forces stormed the town in large numbers and delivered stop-building orders against a number of local houses under construction.
The Israeli forces gave the houses’ owners 20 days to appeal against the orders.
25 nov 2016
The Palestinian Center for Human Right (PCHR) said that Israel unprecedentedly tightened its blockade on the Gaza Strip last month and imposed more restrictions on the movement of goods and citizens at border crossings.
This came in its report on the traffic of goods and individuals at Karam Abu Salem and Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossings last October.
According to this report, the quantity of goods that were allowed into Gaza through Karam Abu Salem crossing noticeably declined.
The volume of imports in October constituted 58.3 percent of the total imports in August, while the exports did not exceed 3.1 percent of the total exports that were there before Israel imposed the siege on Gaza in June 2007.
Israel also persisted during the reporting month in banning entry of about 400 types of different supplies to Gaza, mostly basic goods and raw materials.
Besides, severe restrictions are still imposed on the delivery of building materials needed for reconstructing homes and structures in Gaza, especially those destroyed during Israel’s wars on the impoverished enclave.
Israel only allowed, of the total construction materials needed by Gaza, 2.5 percent of cement, 1.6 percent of steel and 5.3 of gravel.
There were also entry restrictions on cooking gas shipments last month, where only 34.2 percent of the population’s total needs were allowed in.
As for the movement of citizens at Beit Hanoun crossing, Israel reduced further the number of passengers allowed to cross into the Palestinian territories under its occupation.
Compared to last September, the rate of travel rejections for Gaza patients increased. Therefore, the travel of patients in October saw a decline by 33.9 percent.
Simultaneously, a large number of patients’ companions were also denied travel during the same period. The rate of their rejected travel applications dropped by 36.5 percent compared to September.
Furthermore, the rate of businessmen allowed to travel saw about a 20-percent decline, while the number of people with humanitarian cases, relatives of prisoners and elderly worshipers who visit the Aqsa Mosque on Fridays decreased by 54.3 percent, 59.7 percent and 22 percent respectively.
This came in its report on the traffic of goods and individuals at Karam Abu Salem and Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossings last October.
According to this report, the quantity of goods that were allowed into Gaza through Karam Abu Salem crossing noticeably declined.
The volume of imports in October constituted 58.3 percent of the total imports in August, while the exports did not exceed 3.1 percent of the total exports that were there before Israel imposed the siege on Gaza in June 2007.
Israel also persisted during the reporting month in banning entry of about 400 types of different supplies to Gaza, mostly basic goods and raw materials.
Besides, severe restrictions are still imposed on the delivery of building materials needed for reconstructing homes and structures in Gaza, especially those destroyed during Israel’s wars on the impoverished enclave.
Israel only allowed, of the total construction materials needed by Gaza, 2.5 percent of cement, 1.6 percent of steel and 5.3 of gravel.
There were also entry restrictions on cooking gas shipments last month, where only 34.2 percent of the population’s total needs were allowed in.
As for the movement of citizens at Beit Hanoun crossing, Israel reduced further the number of passengers allowed to cross into the Palestinian territories under its occupation.
Compared to last September, the rate of travel rejections for Gaza patients increased. Therefore, the travel of patients in October saw a decline by 33.9 percent.
Simultaneously, a large number of patients’ companions were also denied travel during the same period. The rate of their rejected travel applications dropped by 36.5 percent compared to September.
Furthermore, the rate of businessmen allowed to travel saw about a 20-percent decline, while the number of people with humanitarian cases, relatives of prisoners and elderly worshipers who visit the Aqsa Mosque on Fridays decreased by 54.3 percent, 59.7 percent and 22 percent respectively.
10 nov 2016
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA) disbursed over $1.6 million for reconstruction and severe repair works to 244 refugee families across Gaza, an official statement said on Wednesday.
It said, according to WAFA, that emergency shelter – including support for home repairs, reconstruction and interim shelter solutions – is a top priority for UNRWA.
“The Agency remains committed to supporting affected families yet requires new funding to continue the shelter cash assistance program,” it said.
The European Union Heads of Mission in Jerusalem and Ramallah, meanwhile, visited Gaza on Tuesday to get first-hand impression of reconstruction efforts.
A group of more than 20 senior European diplomats met with UNRWA officials, Palestinian ministers and representatives of Palestinian civil society.
A statement by the EU missions said, following the visit, that “the EU is committed to facilitating the social and economic development of the Gaza Strip.”
The group called for “swift steps to produce a fundamental change to the political, security and economic situation in the Gaza Strip, including the end of the closure and a full opening of the crossing points.”
They also said that “unimpeded humanitarian access to Gaza, as foreseen by international humanitarian law, for national, local and international humanitarian organizations, including EU bodies and Member States is essential to address Gaza’s pressing humanitarian needs.”
It said, according to WAFA, that emergency shelter – including support for home repairs, reconstruction and interim shelter solutions – is a top priority for UNRWA.
“The Agency remains committed to supporting affected families yet requires new funding to continue the shelter cash assistance program,” it said.
The European Union Heads of Mission in Jerusalem and Ramallah, meanwhile, visited Gaza on Tuesday to get first-hand impression of reconstruction efforts.
A group of more than 20 senior European diplomats met with UNRWA officials, Palestinian ministers and representatives of Palestinian civil society.
A statement by the EU missions said, following the visit, that “the EU is committed to facilitating the social and economic development of the Gaza Strip.”
The group called for “swift steps to produce a fundamental change to the political, security and economic situation in the Gaza Strip, including the end of the closure and a full opening of the crossing points.”
They also said that “unimpeded humanitarian access to Gaza, as foreseen by international humanitarian law, for national, local and international humanitarian organizations, including EU bodies and Member States is essential to address Gaza’s pressing humanitarian needs.”
28 oct 2016
The Israeli security cabinet recently decided in a secret meeting to pursue a carrot and stick plan, which was proposed by Israeli war minister Avigdor Lieberman, against the Palestinians in the West Bank.
During that cabinet meeting, Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu, war minister Avigdor Liberman, interior minister Aryeh Deri, energy minister Yuval Steinitz and construction minister Yoav Galant voted in favor of the plan; whereas, education minister Naftali Bennett voted against it and justice minister Ayelet Shaked left a note opposing it.
According to Lieberman’s carrot and stick plan, severe punitive measures would be taken against residents of any Palestinian area in the West Bank if any one of them launched attacks against Israelis, while those prepared to live peacefully with Jewish settlers would receive privileges and construction permits.
The security cabinet decision, the first of its kind, was kept under wraps to avoid protest from Jewish communities in the region because it will give the Palestinians a chance to build homes in Area C of the West Bank, according to a Haaretz report Thursday. The decision was made on October 5.
During that cabinet meeting, Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu, war minister Avigdor Liberman, interior minister Aryeh Deri, energy minister Yuval Steinitz and construction minister Yoav Galant voted in favor of the plan; whereas, education minister Naftali Bennett voted against it and justice minister Ayelet Shaked left a note opposing it.
According to Lieberman’s carrot and stick plan, severe punitive measures would be taken against residents of any Palestinian area in the West Bank if any one of them launched attacks against Israelis, while those prepared to live peacefully with Jewish settlers would receive privileges and construction permits.
The security cabinet decision, the first of its kind, was kept under wraps to avoid protest from Jewish communities in the region because it will give the Palestinians a chance to build homes in Area C of the West Bank, according to a Haaretz report Thursday. The decision was made on October 5.
