Gaza Strip Boycott: Private sector suspends receiving Israeli commodities

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On Wednesday, private sector associations in the Gaza Strip suspended receiving incoming commodity shipments from Israel for two days. The strike was meant to call attention to Gaza's dire economic situation. CGTN Noor Harazeen has an update.

Palestinian traders and businessmen in the Gaza Strip suspended the entry of goods through the Kerem Shalom crossing at the border with Israel on Wednesday and Thursday. A spokesman for Gaza's private sector said that the move was intended to alert the international community of the dire economic situation.

MAHER AL-TABAA GAZA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE SPOKESMAN "Our message to the international community is that the Gaza Strip has reached the phase of economic collapse. So all parties, including the United Nations, must take immediate action to end the Israeli blockade imposed on Gaza."

As part of the strike, a press conference was held to protest the poor economic situation and the Israeli blockade at Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing north of Gaza.

WALID AL-HOSARI, CHAIRMAN GAZA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE "This is our last appeal to the international community, above all the United Nations, the peace sponsors and the Quartet, that they should seriously push Israel to open all the crossings in Gaza and to lift this unjust blockade immediately to save Gaza a real economic catastrophe."

The economic prospects of Palestinians in Gaza got worse last month, when the United States withheld $65 million out of a $125 million in planned funding to the UN's relief and works agency for Palestinians (UNRWA), until the Palestinians resume peace talks with Israel.

According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), the unemployment rate in Gaza was 43.6 % in 2017. Another report by the UN says two thirds of the population in Gaza rely on international aid.

Meanwhile, citizens remain hopeful that the Palestinian government can help Gaza through this economic crisis, even after Palestinian rivals Fatah and Hamas signed a unity deal in Cairo last year were dashed, as the national reconciliation process has seemingly stalled. Noor Harazeen CGTN GAZA.