21 sept 2012
Gaza ministry: Tunnel closures hurt imports
Palestinians inspect damage to a tunnel in the Gaza Strip after an Israeli airstrike in 2009
Basic goods are becoming more scarce in the Gaza Strip after Egypt moved to close dozens of tunnels under their border, Gaza's ministry of national economy said Friday.
Monthly imports of basic foodstuffs, including flour, rice, sugar, and wheat, have fallen 31 percent since the tunnel closures, the ministry said in a statement.
Construction materials brought through the tunnels have declined by 45 percent, it added.
By contrast, import of goods through Israel's Kerem Shalom crossing had increased by 22 percent, the ministry said, while noting that the terminal's 300 trucks-per-day entry limit was not sufficient for Gaza's needs.
An Israeli official said Thursday that military authorities had approved a host of measures to facilitate the entry and exit of goods at Gaza crossings, as long as border violence remained under control.
The Gaza Strip is under an Israeli land and sea blockade, and its sole border crossing not controlled by Israel, Egypt's Rafah terminal, is not equipped for the passage of goods.
To circumvent the blockade, a vast underground tunnel network into Egypt was established, with the oversight of the Hamas-run government.
After years of turning a blind eye, Egypt started closing the tunnels after the Aug. 5 attack in Sinai when gunmen killed 16 Egyptian soldiers. Egypt suspects the tunnels were used by some of the militants, while Hamas says no-one from Gaza was involved in the attack.
On Saturday, hundreds of Hamas supporters protested at the Gaza border, demanding that Cairo stop sealing tunnels, chanting: "Closing the tunnels is a death sentence for Gaza."
Gaza's Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh mooted setting up a free trade area between Gaza and Egypt at a meeting on Monday night with Egyptian Prime Minister Hisham Kandil, but West Bank officials fear this would entrench the separation between their rival governments.
Basic goods are becoming more scarce in the Gaza Strip after Egypt moved to close dozens of tunnels under their border, Gaza's ministry of national economy said Friday.
Monthly imports of basic foodstuffs, including flour, rice, sugar, and wheat, have fallen 31 percent since the tunnel closures, the ministry said in a statement.
Construction materials brought through the tunnels have declined by 45 percent, it added.
By contrast, import of goods through Israel's Kerem Shalom crossing had increased by 22 percent, the ministry said, while noting that the terminal's 300 trucks-per-day entry limit was not sufficient for Gaza's needs.
An Israeli official said Thursday that military authorities had approved a host of measures to facilitate the entry and exit of goods at Gaza crossings, as long as border violence remained under control.
The Gaza Strip is under an Israeli land and sea blockade, and its sole border crossing not controlled by Israel, Egypt's Rafah terminal, is not equipped for the passage of goods.
To circumvent the blockade, a vast underground tunnel network into Egypt was established, with the oversight of the Hamas-run government.
After years of turning a blind eye, Egypt started closing the tunnels after the Aug. 5 attack in Sinai when gunmen killed 16 Egyptian soldiers. Egypt suspects the tunnels were used by some of the militants, while Hamas says no-one from Gaza was involved in the attack.
On Saturday, hundreds of Hamas supporters protested at the Gaza border, demanding that Cairo stop sealing tunnels, chanting: "Closing the tunnels is a death sentence for Gaza."
Gaza's Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh mooted setting up a free trade area between Gaza and Egypt at a meeting on Monday night with Egyptian Prime Minister Hisham Kandil, but West Bank officials fear this would entrench the separation between their rival governments.
18 sept 2012
Hamas appeals to Egypt over closure of smuggling tunnels
Egyptian army with heavy machinery used to destroy tunnels linking Egypt and the Gaza Strip, arrive at Rafah city, northeast of Cairo Aug. 9, 2012
By Nidal al-Mughrabi
Egypt's crackdown on smuggling tunnels along its border with the Gaza Strip is making shortages ever tighter and has forced Hamas to consider urgent alternatives.
Hamas officials asked Egypt late on Monday to consider alternative trade routes, such as a free trade zone, a direct deal that could boost tax revenues and circumvent rival Fatah's and Israel's control of official imports to Gaza.
Egypt started closing the tunnels after the Aug. 5 attack in Sinai when gunmen killed 16 Egyptian soldiers. Egypt suspects the tunnels were used by some of the militants. Hamas says no-one from Gaza was involved in the attack.
On Saturday, hundreds of Hamas supporters protested at the Gaza border, demanding that Cairo stop sealing tunnels, chanting: "Closing the tunnels is a death sentence for Gaza."
Israel has imposed a blockade on Gaza since 2007 when Hamas seized control by ousting Fatah forces of President Mahmoud Abbas. It says the blockade is aimed at stopping weapons and other military materials reaching Hamas.
Last year Egypt allowed more people to cross at the border with Gaza in the town of Rafah but it is used only for travel, not goods. Officially, goods enter Gaza only through Israel.
Israel allows in fuel and building materials mainly for United Nations-funded projects but not for private use. Hamas official Ibrahim Jaber of Gaza's Ministry of Planning said that in 2011 some $1 billion worth of goods came in via Israel.
Maher Al-Tabbaa, a Gaza-based economist, said that 30 percent of Gaza's goods come from the tunnels. Tunnelers say 80 percent of food sold in Gaza comes through the tunnels.
"If tunnels are closed there will be a complete collapse in Gaza. It would suffer an economic catastrophe," he said.
The tunnels have been used to import anything from food to construction materials, fuel and cars, and militants have also used them to import munitions used to attack Israel, which has targeted some of the tunnels with air strikes.
"The tunnel business is drying up and Egyptian security forces are working day and night to seal the tunnels. In one area along the border 180 tunnels have been closed," tunnel owner Abu Abdallah told Reuters.
He said that the clampdown had led to a rise in food prices in the territory and that construction materials such as cement and steel had also become more expensive.
"The construction boom in Gaza will come to a halt soon as all tunnels that used to bring in gravel have been blocked by Egyptian security," said Abdallah, who employs 40 people.
Ali, a tunneler for the past five years, said the import of building materials was becoming impossible because Egyptian suppliers were raising their prices, while Hamas was not allowing them to follow suit.
"A ton of cement now costs 400 shekels (about $100) but Hamas forces us to sell at 370 shekels, which means I will lose even before paying the workers who pull the goods through the tunnel," Ali told Reuters.
"I and many others have stopped working because Hamas regulations do not take our losses into account," he said.
Jihad Abu El-Kass, whose family owns a Gaza City supermarket, said dairy products were in short supply.
Hamas officials have urged Egypt to allow Rafah crossing to be used for goods also but Cairo has been reluctant to pursue changes to international agreements with Israel and other Western nations which stipulate that Rafah is only for travel.
Gaza's Hamas Prime Minister, Ismail Haniyeh, mooted setting up a free trade area between Gaza and Egypt at a meeting on Monday night with Egyptian Prime Minister Hisham Kandil, a Hamas government official told Reuters from Cairo.
"We explained the concept in detail ... the idea is to alleviate the economic hardship in Gaza," Taher al-Nono said.
An Egyptian official told Reuters that the proposal was made at the meeting but that it was too early for a response.
Some Palestinian officials fear that such a deal might encourage Hamas to finally shun a stalled Egyptian-drafted reconciliation pact to end a rift with Fatah.
By Nidal al-Mughrabi
Egypt's crackdown on smuggling tunnels along its border with the Gaza Strip is making shortages ever tighter and has forced Hamas to consider urgent alternatives.
Hamas officials asked Egypt late on Monday to consider alternative trade routes, such as a free trade zone, a direct deal that could boost tax revenues and circumvent rival Fatah's and Israel's control of official imports to Gaza.
Egypt started closing the tunnels after the Aug. 5 attack in Sinai when gunmen killed 16 Egyptian soldiers. Egypt suspects the tunnels were used by some of the militants. Hamas says no-one from Gaza was involved in the attack.
On Saturday, hundreds of Hamas supporters protested at the Gaza border, demanding that Cairo stop sealing tunnels, chanting: "Closing the tunnels is a death sentence for Gaza."
Israel has imposed a blockade on Gaza since 2007 when Hamas seized control by ousting Fatah forces of President Mahmoud Abbas. It says the blockade is aimed at stopping weapons and other military materials reaching Hamas.
Last year Egypt allowed more people to cross at the border with Gaza in the town of Rafah but it is used only for travel, not goods. Officially, goods enter Gaza only through Israel.
Israel allows in fuel and building materials mainly for United Nations-funded projects but not for private use. Hamas official Ibrahim Jaber of Gaza's Ministry of Planning said that in 2011 some $1 billion worth of goods came in via Israel.
Maher Al-Tabbaa, a Gaza-based economist, said that 30 percent of Gaza's goods come from the tunnels. Tunnelers say 80 percent of food sold in Gaza comes through the tunnels.
"If tunnels are closed there will be a complete collapse in Gaza. It would suffer an economic catastrophe," he said.
The tunnels have been used to import anything from food to construction materials, fuel and cars, and militants have also used them to import munitions used to attack Israel, which has targeted some of the tunnels with air strikes.
"The tunnel business is drying up and Egyptian security forces are working day and night to seal the tunnels. In one area along the border 180 tunnels have been closed," tunnel owner Abu Abdallah told Reuters.
He said that the clampdown had led to a rise in food prices in the territory and that construction materials such as cement and steel had also become more expensive.
"The construction boom in Gaza will come to a halt soon as all tunnels that used to bring in gravel have been blocked by Egyptian security," said Abdallah, who employs 40 people.
Ali, a tunneler for the past five years, said the import of building materials was becoming impossible because Egyptian suppliers were raising their prices, while Hamas was not allowing them to follow suit.
"A ton of cement now costs 400 shekels (about $100) but Hamas forces us to sell at 370 shekels, which means I will lose even before paying the workers who pull the goods through the tunnel," Ali told Reuters.
"I and many others have stopped working because Hamas regulations do not take our losses into account," he said.
Jihad Abu El-Kass, whose family owns a Gaza City supermarket, said dairy products were in short supply.
Hamas officials have urged Egypt to allow Rafah crossing to be used for goods also but Cairo has been reluctant to pursue changes to international agreements with Israel and other Western nations which stipulate that Rafah is only for travel.
Gaza's Hamas Prime Minister, Ismail Haniyeh, mooted setting up a free trade area between Gaza and Egypt at a meeting on Monday night with Egyptian Prime Minister Hisham Kandil, a Hamas government official told Reuters from Cairo.
"We explained the concept in detail ... the idea is to alleviate the economic hardship in Gaza," Taher al-Nono said.
An Egyptian official told Reuters that the proposal was made at the meeting but that it was too early for a response.
Some Palestinian officials fear that such a deal might encourage Hamas to finally shun a stalled Egyptian-drafted reconciliation pact to end a rift with Fatah.
15 sept 2012
Gazans appeal to Egypt to find alternative before closing tunnels
Hundreds of Palestinian citizens on Saturday morning participated in a march called for by Hamas Movement on the Palestinian-Egyptian borders to protest the Egyptian decision to close all tunnels in Rafah area.
Hamas spokesman Mansour Barbak gave a speech during the protest demanding Egypt to find an alternative and effective solution before deciding to close all tunnels.
"Do not let Gaza people suffer from the blockade and do not leave us vulnerable to the Zionist arrogance and pressures," Barbak appealed to the Egyptian leadership.
"What we need from Egypt, which represents a lifeline for the Palestinians, is to lift the blockade," he added.
He stressed that the tunnels are used to provide vital needs for Gaza people and if they are closed, Egypt has to provide an alternative.
The Egyptian government started to destroy the tunnels used by Gazans to bring essential products into the besieged Strip in the aftermath of the terrorist attack that claimed the lives of many Egyptian soldiers.
Hamas spokesman Mansour Barbak gave a speech during the protest demanding Egypt to find an alternative and effective solution before deciding to close all tunnels.
"Do not let Gaza people suffer from the blockade and do not leave us vulnerable to the Zionist arrogance and pressures," Barbak appealed to the Egyptian leadership.
"What we need from Egypt, which represents a lifeline for the Palestinians, is to lift the blockade," he added.
He stressed that the tunnels are used to provide vital needs for Gaza people and if they are closed, Egypt has to provide an alternative.
The Egyptian government started to destroy the tunnels used by Gazans to bring essential products into the besieged Strip in the aftermath of the terrorist attack that claimed the lives of many Egyptian soldiers.
8 sept 2012
Egyptian Army says it destroyed 31 Gaza supply tunnels
Palestinian men transport bags of cement through tunnels used for smuggling goods, including food, fuel, and building materials, along the Gaza-Egypt border in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on August 23, 2012
The Egyptian Army says it has destroyed 31 Gaza supply tunnels in its recent operation in the Sinai Peninsula.
Army spokesman Colonel Ahmed Mohamed Ali told a news conference in Cairo on Saturday that 31 tunnels used to smuggle goods into the Gaza Strip were destroyed, Reuters reported.
The tunnels were used by Palestinians to transfer food, fuel, medicines, and other basic necessities of life into the besieged Gaza Strip.
During the operation, 32 people were killed and dozens more arrested, including foreigners, Colonel Ali added.
He also said that a huge cache of arms and ammunition was also seized during the operation.
“Egypt is coordinating with the Israeli side over the presence of Egyptian armed forces in Sinai. They know this,” the Egyptian Army official noted.
The tunnel trade is vital to Gaza's economy, which has suffered under a land, air, and sea blockade on the Gaza Strip by Israel and Egypt on the coastal territory imposed in June 2007.
Some 1.5 million residents of Gaza are being denied their basic rights, including freedom of movement, the right to a decent standard of living, and proper employment, healthcare, and education.
Although the Israeli military officially withdrew from Gaza in 2005, they still frequently bomb the tunnel network, saying Palestinian resistance fighters use the tunnels for storing and smuggling weapons.
But the Palestinians dismiss the allegations, arguing they have resorted to the underground tunnels to bring basic needs to the impoverished Gazans because the territory has been sealed by the blockade.
The Egyptian Army says it has destroyed 31 Gaza supply tunnels in its recent operation in the Sinai Peninsula.
Army spokesman Colonel Ahmed Mohamed Ali told a news conference in Cairo on Saturday that 31 tunnels used to smuggle goods into the Gaza Strip were destroyed, Reuters reported.
The tunnels were used by Palestinians to transfer food, fuel, medicines, and other basic necessities of life into the besieged Gaza Strip.
During the operation, 32 people were killed and dozens more arrested, including foreigners, Colonel Ali added.
He also said that a huge cache of arms and ammunition was also seized during the operation.
“Egypt is coordinating with the Israeli side over the presence of Egyptian armed forces in Sinai. They know this,” the Egyptian Army official noted.
The tunnel trade is vital to Gaza's economy, which has suffered under a land, air, and sea blockade on the Gaza Strip by Israel and Egypt on the coastal territory imposed in June 2007.
Some 1.5 million residents of Gaza are being denied their basic rights, including freedom of movement, the right to a decent standard of living, and proper employment, healthcare, and education.
Although the Israeli military officially withdrew from Gaza in 2005, they still frequently bomb the tunnel network, saying Palestinian resistance fighters use the tunnels for storing and smuggling weapons.
But the Palestinians dismiss the allegations, arguing they have resorted to the underground tunnels to bring basic needs to the impoverished Gazans because the territory has been sealed by the blockade.
4 sept 2012
Gaza man killed in Rafah tunnel collapse
Talib Udwan 24
Smuggling tunnels run under the Egypt-Gaza border
A man from the Gaza Strip was killed and another was seriously injured when a smuggling tunnel under the Gaza-Egypt border in Rafah collapsed on both sides Tuesday.
Spokesman of the Hamas-run government’s ministry of health in Gaza Ashraf al-Qidrah told Ma’an that civil defense had difficulties pulling out the body of 24-year-old Talib Udwan and an injured man whose identity was not clear.
Smuggling tunnels run under the Egypt-Gaza border
A man from the Gaza Strip was killed and another was seriously injured when a smuggling tunnel under the Gaza-Egypt border in Rafah collapsed on both sides Tuesday.
Spokesman of the Hamas-run government’s ministry of health in Gaza Ashraf al-Qidrah told Ma’an that civil defense had difficulties pulling out the body of 24-year-old Talib Udwan and an injured man whose identity was not clear.
28 aug 2012
A Tunnel-Free Future For Gaza? – Analysis
13,000 cars are estimated to have been smuggled into Gaza through these tunnels in 2011
This month’s border attack in the Sinai Peninsula, which killed 16 Egyptian soldiers, has bolstered calls to shut down a network of underground tunnels between Egypt and the isolated Gaza Strip. The tunnels have been used for years to smuggle goods into Gaza and, Egypt alleges, fighters into the Sinai.
But Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, sees this as an opportunity.
Publicly and in discussions with Egyptian officials, Hamas has been pushing to use the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and Gaza for commercial trade. Ghazi Hamad, deputy minister of foreign affairs, has said a free trade zone might soon “liberate Gaza”.
“Once the Rafah crossing operates as a hub for goods, the tunnels will become history,” Azzam Shawwa, a former Minister of Energy in the Palestinian Authority (PA), told IRIN.
The tunnels are the main commercial trade routes in and out of the Gaza Strip, part of the occupied Palestinian territories.
Israel has kept its borders with Gaza closed except for the Kerem Shalom crossing, where the passage of goods is heavily restricted. The Agreed Principles for Rafah Crossing, signed by the Palestinian Authority and Israel in 2005, included plans for formal trade, but the deal was frozen when Hamas came to power in the Gaza Strip in 2006.
Gaza-Egypt relations have also been strained over the blockade of Gaza, though they have improved since former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak was ousted from power last year. The recent attacks – and their humanitarian impact – have made the calls for change all the more urgent.
“In the end, what happened in Sinai might turn out to have a positive impact on the future relations between Egypt and Gaza,” Mustafa Sawaf, former chief-editor of the Hamas-affiliated Filistin newspaper, told IRIN.
Since 5 August, when Egypt closed the crossing and started shutting down some of the tunnels, the import of fuel and construction material has reportedly declined by 30 and 70 percent, respectively, and power cuts have reached up to 16 hours a day, according to the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
A free trade zone would provide Gaza with more facilities, energy and access to goods, Hamad, who is also the chairman of the border crossings authority in the Gaza Strip, told IRIN, “but it wouldn’t turn Gaza into some kind of Taiwan. We have to remain realistic. It should bring people back to a normal life”.
Prospects for Free-trade Zone
With a free-trade zone, Gaza could potentially import and export goods and raw materials through the Egyptian seaport of Al-Arish without paying custom duties to Egyptian authorities.
Another option would be an industrial free zone allowing Palestinians from Gaza to pass freely into industrial areas in Egypt for work, said Shawwa.
Asked whether a free-trade zone would be in Israel’s interest, Ilana Stein, deputy spokesperson of the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told IRIN, “We have to wait until there are serious suggestions by the parties, Palestinians and Egyptians. Once something clear is there, we are ready to discuss it.”
But analysts said that the Rafah crossing is not designed for any of these possibilities and would have to be upgraded. In addition, Egypt, struggling to provide its 90 million people with the fruits of its recent revolution, is unlikely to want Palestinian workers vying for scarce jobs amid rising poverty.
Tunnel Profiteers
There is likely to be internal opposition too. While Fatah, the political party ruling the West Bank, has supported Egypt’s move to shut down the tunnels, saying they “serve a small category of stakeholder and private interests”, analysts say there could be significant resistance to attempts to permanently shut them down.
Some US$500-700 million in goods are estimated to pass through the tunnels every year, charged by the Hamas government with duties of at least 14.5 percent since early 2012, according to a new report by the International Crisis Group (ICG).
Several influential families in control of the tunnels profit from every item that passes through them. It costs $25 to smuggle a person through and around $500 for a car; in 2011, 13,000 cars are believed to have come into Gaza through the tunnels.
“Eight hundred millionaires and 1,600 near-millionaires control the tunnels at the expense of both Egyptian and Palestinian national interests,” Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas was quoted as saying in The Economist.
The tunnels have recently contributed to a construction boom, with apartments, parks and mosques being built with help from investors like the Saudi-led Islamic Development Bank. The transition to a tunnel-free future will have to address these interests.
“It is true that there is a class of people benefitting from the tunnels,” Nathan Thrall, senior analyst at ICG, told IRIN. “But Hamas can solve that by involving them in legitimate trade.”
Hamas would also earn more money in customs than it does in the current situation, where middlemen profit too. “I don’t think that this is as large an obstacle as others,” Thrall said.
Complex Politics
One of the other main obstacles is how Israel will react.
Calls for improved trade relations with Egypt have sparked fears that Israel would use the opportunity to rid itself of all responsibility for Gaza: Once Rafah is opened to commercial goods, Israel could argue it no longer has to keep open the Kerem Shalom crossing – the only official entry point for imported goods. “That would be the end of Israeli responsibility for Gaza,” said Thrall.
Such a move could undermine efforts to reach Palestinian unity by further disconnecting Gaza from the West Bank. For this reason, even Hamas is careful not to push too hard for imports into Gaza.
“We don’t want to see Israel closing Kerem Shalom,” Hamad said. “Israel just wants to push us towards Egypt. But we do consider Gaza as part of the Palestinian homeland.”
“It’s a serious discussion,” added Shawwa, the former PA minister. “Do we want an independent economy of Gaza? That might take us into a new era of Palestinian separation.”
Kerem Shalom is the only crossing point where commercial and humanitarian goods are allowed to enter Gaza from Israel, and even when open, aid agencies have struggled to consistently import enough supplies to meet operational needs.
Some analysts speculate the newly elected president in Egypt, Islamist Mohamed Morsi, will make a trade zone conditional on the success of Palestinian reconciliation, while others say that he could also move forward in the absence of Palestinian unity.
“The relationship between Egypt, Israel and Hamas is complex,” said Abdel Monem Said, director of the Al-Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies in Cairo. “Morsi knows he can’t really allow Palestinians in Gaza to starve. And there is pressure from inside the [Muslim] Brotherhood to support Hamas.” On the other hand, Egypt is constrained by close security cooperation with Israel in Sinai, he told IRIN.
“By allowing people to pass, Morsi would do enough to meet his humanitarian obligations,” said a European diplomat in Jerusalem who requested anonymity. “The security issue with Israel is more pressing at the moment.”
Mkheimar Abu Saada, a political scientist at Gaza’s Al-Azhar University, says Egypt is in a very delicate situation: “On one hand, they don’t want to be seen as cooperating with Israel by imposing a siege on the Gaza Strip like Mubarak did. In the meantime, they don’t want to be blamed for terminating the relationship with Israel.”
As such, Hamas acknowledges its hopes for a free trade zone are unlikely to be realized in the near future.
For now, it is focused on “more realistic options”, like allowing more people to cross Rafah and exporting from Gaza – with some success. After Egypt gradually eased restrictions at Rafah in May, Morsi agreed with Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh last month on increasing the number of crossing travelers to 1,500 per day and increasing the amount Qatari fuel allowed to pass.
“I do think there are some chances that Rafah will be used for commercial purposes and not only exports,” Hamad said, “but maybe it is still too early for Egyptians to give an answer right now.”
This month’s border attack in the Sinai Peninsula, which killed 16 Egyptian soldiers, has bolstered calls to shut down a network of underground tunnels between Egypt and the isolated Gaza Strip. The tunnels have been used for years to smuggle goods into Gaza and, Egypt alleges, fighters into the Sinai.
But Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, sees this as an opportunity.
Publicly and in discussions with Egyptian officials, Hamas has been pushing to use the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and Gaza for commercial trade. Ghazi Hamad, deputy minister of foreign affairs, has said a free trade zone might soon “liberate Gaza”.
“Once the Rafah crossing operates as a hub for goods, the tunnels will become history,” Azzam Shawwa, a former Minister of Energy in the Palestinian Authority (PA), told IRIN.
The tunnels are the main commercial trade routes in and out of the Gaza Strip, part of the occupied Palestinian territories.
Israel has kept its borders with Gaza closed except for the Kerem Shalom crossing, where the passage of goods is heavily restricted. The Agreed Principles for Rafah Crossing, signed by the Palestinian Authority and Israel in 2005, included plans for formal trade, but the deal was frozen when Hamas came to power in the Gaza Strip in 2006.
Gaza-Egypt relations have also been strained over the blockade of Gaza, though they have improved since former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak was ousted from power last year. The recent attacks – and their humanitarian impact – have made the calls for change all the more urgent.
“In the end, what happened in Sinai might turn out to have a positive impact on the future relations between Egypt and Gaza,” Mustafa Sawaf, former chief-editor of the Hamas-affiliated Filistin newspaper, told IRIN.
Since 5 August, when Egypt closed the crossing and started shutting down some of the tunnels, the import of fuel and construction material has reportedly declined by 30 and 70 percent, respectively, and power cuts have reached up to 16 hours a day, according to the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
A free trade zone would provide Gaza with more facilities, energy and access to goods, Hamad, who is also the chairman of the border crossings authority in the Gaza Strip, told IRIN, “but it wouldn’t turn Gaza into some kind of Taiwan. We have to remain realistic. It should bring people back to a normal life”.
Prospects for Free-trade Zone
With a free-trade zone, Gaza could potentially import and export goods and raw materials through the Egyptian seaport of Al-Arish without paying custom duties to Egyptian authorities.
Another option would be an industrial free zone allowing Palestinians from Gaza to pass freely into industrial areas in Egypt for work, said Shawwa.
Asked whether a free-trade zone would be in Israel’s interest, Ilana Stein, deputy spokesperson of the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told IRIN, “We have to wait until there are serious suggestions by the parties, Palestinians and Egyptians. Once something clear is there, we are ready to discuss it.”
But analysts said that the Rafah crossing is not designed for any of these possibilities and would have to be upgraded. In addition, Egypt, struggling to provide its 90 million people with the fruits of its recent revolution, is unlikely to want Palestinian workers vying for scarce jobs amid rising poverty.
Tunnel Profiteers
There is likely to be internal opposition too. While Fatah, the political party ruling the West Bank, has supported Egypt’s move to shut down the tunnels, saying they “serve a small category of stakeholder and private interests”, analysts say there could be significant resistance to attempts to permanently shut them down.
Some US$500-700 million in goods are estimated to pass through the tunnels every year, charged by the Hamas government with duties of at least 14.5 percent since early 2012, according to a new report by the International Crisis Group (ICG).
Several influential families in control of the tunnels profit from every item that passes through them. It costs $25 to smuggle a person through and around $500 for a car; in 2011, 13,000 cars are believed to have come into Gaza through the tunnels.
“Eight hundred millionaires and 1,600 near-millionaires control the tunnels at the expense of both Egyptian and Palestinian national interests,” Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas was quoted as saying in The Economist.
The tunnels have recently contributed to a construction boom, with apartments, parks and mosques being built with help from investors like the Saudi-led Islamic Development Bank. The transition to a tunnel-free future will have to address these interests.
“It is true that there is a class of people benefitting from the tunnels,” Nathan Thrall, senior analyst at ICG, told IRIN. “But Hamas can solve that by involving them in legitimate trade.”
Hamas would also earn more money in customs than it does in the current situation, where middlemen profit too. “I don’t think that this is as large an obstacle as others,” Thrall said.
Complex Politics
One of the other main obstacles is how Israel will react.
Calls for improved trade relations with Egypt have sparked fears that Israel would use the opportunity to rid itself of all responsibility for Gaza: Once Rafah is opened to commercial goods, Israel could argue it no longer has to keep open the Kerem Shalom crossing – the only official entry point for imported goods. “That would be the end of Israeli responsibility for Gaza,” said Thrall.
Such a move could undermine efforts to reach Palestinian unity by further disconnecting Gaza from the West Bank. For this reason, even Hamas is careful not to push too hard for imports into Gaza.
“We don’t want to see Israel closing Kerem Shalom,” Hamad said. “Israel just wants to push us towards Egypt. But we do consider Gaza as part of the Palestinian homeland.”
“It’s a serious discussion,” added Shawwa, the former PA minister. “Do we want an independent economy of Gaza? That might take us into a new era of Palestinian separation.”
Kerem Shalom is the only crossing point where commercial and humanitarian goods are allowed to enter Gaza from Israel, and even when open, aid agencies have struggled to consistently import enough supplies to meet operational needs.
Some analysts speculate the newly elected president in Egypt, Islamist Mohamed Morsi, will make a trade zone conditional on the success of Palestinian reconciliation, while others say that he could also move forward in the absence of Palestinian unity.
“The relationship between Egypt, Israel and Hamas is complex,” said Abdel Monem Said, director of the Al-Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies in Cairo. “Morsi knows he can’t really allow Palestinians in Gaza to starve. And there is pressure from inside the [Muslim] Brotherhood to support Hamas.” On the other hand, Egypt is constrained by close security cooperation with Israel in Sinai, he told IRIN.
“By allowing people to pass, Morsi would do enough to meet his humanitarian obligations,” said a European diplomat in Jerusalem who requested anonymity. “The security issue with Israel is more pressing at the moment.”
Mkheimar Abu Saada, a political scientist at Gaza’s Al-Azhar University, says Egypt is in a very delicate situation: “On one hand, they don’t want to be seen as cooperating with Israel by imposing a siege on the Gaza Strip like Mubarak did. In the meantime, they don’t want to be blamed for terminating the relationship with Israel.”
As such, Hamas acknowledges its hopes for a free trade zone are unlikely to be realized in the near future.
For now, it is focused on “more realistic options”, like allowing more people to cross Rafah and exporting from Gaza – with some success. After Egypt gradually eased restrictions at Rafah in May, Morsi agreed with Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh last month on increasing the number of crossing travelers to 1,500 per day and increasing the amount Qatari fuel allowed to pass.
“I do think there are some chances that Rafah will be used for commercial purposes and not only exports,” Hamad said, “but maybe it is still too early for Egyptians to give an answer right now.”
14 aug 2012
Frustrated Hamas seeks light at end of Egyptian tunnel
Hamas security forces patrol the border between Egypt and Gaza
By Nidal al-Mughrabi
Hamas, stunned by Egypt's closure of its border with Gaza, said on Monday the new Islamist leadership in Cairo was imposing the same pain on the Palestinian enclave as ousted former president, Hosni Mubarak.
Egypt pulled the shutters down on the Rafah passenger terminal a week ago after unidentified militants shot dead 16 Egyptian police near the Gaza border before launching an attack on neighboring Israel that was swiftly smothered.
Hamas denied speculation that some of the assailants had crossed from Gaza and has accused Egypt, led since June by an Islamist president, Muhammad Mursi, of imposing collective punishment on the impoverished Palestinians.
"We suffered from the unjust regime of Mubarak that participated in the (Israeli) blockade of Gaza. Why should we suffer now in the era of Egypt's revolution and democracy?" said Hamas Interior Minister Fathi Hammad.
"The Egyptian leadership is requested to order the reopening of the Rafah crossing to alleviate the suffering of Palestinians wanting to travel, students, patients, residents in third countries and pilgrims," he added in a statement.
Israel has for years refused exit visas for all but a tiny minority in Gaza, making Rafah the sole window on the world for almost all of the enclave's 1.7 million Palestinians, with some 800 people a day using the terminal to reach Egypt.
Since the closure, thousands have been stranded, although Cairo did order a brief opening on Friday to allow Palestinians trapped in Egypt to return home.
Egypt said on Monday it would open the crossing temporarily yet again, but just for three days, mainly to permit travel for humanitarian cases such as Palestinians seeking medical care abroad, and students, a Hamas official said.
"If Palestine was not a top priority for you, you should change direction," Hammad said in an unusually sharp rebuke.
Hamas believed Mursi would usher in a new period of harmony between Gaza and Cairo, but that has yet to materialize because of strategic considerations involving Egypt's 1979 peace treaty with Israel and related military aid from the United States.
Tunnel clashes
Immediately after the Sinai killings, Hamas ordered the closure of around 1,000 smuggling tunnels along its border with Egypt to prevent possible infiltration by attackers.
Several tunnels have remained operational bringing food, fuel and construction materials into Gaza, but Hamas has said it would be willing to see all the underground passages closed if Egypt agreed to defy Israel and let goods flow through Rafah.
Israel maintains a strict control of all imports into Gaza. Mubarak, deeply suspicious of the Islamists, was happy to support the Gaza blockade.
In a call underscoring deep fissures within Palestinian society, Hamas's political foes have urged Egypt to destroy all the tunnels and starve the Islamist group of the multi-million dollar duties it imposes on smuggled produce.
"These tunnels, which solidified the division of Palestine in Gaza, have for some time been a threat to Egypt's national security and the unity of the Palestinian people," said Tayeb Abdel-Rahim, a top aide to President Mahmoud Abbas.
Abbas governs only in the nearby West Bank after Hamas defeated his forces in Gaza in a brief civil war in 2007.
"Illegal smuggling comes at the expense of the legitimate interests of our nation and its citizens," he added. His comments were denounced by Hamas, which called the tunnels a "lifeline" for Gaza's people.
By Nidal al-Mughrabi
Hamas, stunned by Egypt's closure of its border with Gaza, said on Monday the new Islamist leadership in Cairo was imposing the same pain on the Palestinian enclave as ousted former president, Hosni Mubarak.
Egypt pulled the shutters down on the Rafah passenger terminal a week ago after unidentified militants shot dead 16 Egyptian police near the Gaza border before launching an attack on neighboring Israel that was swiftly smothered.
Hamas denied speculation that some of the assailants had crossed from Gaza and has accused Egypt, led since June by an Islamist president, Muhammad Mursi, of imposing collective punishment on the impoverished Palestinians.
"We suffered from the unjust regime of Mubarak that participated in the (Israeli) blockade of Gaza. Why should we suffer now in the era of Egypt's revolution and democracy?" said Hamas Interior Minister Fathi Hammad.
"The Egyptian leadership is requested to order the reopening of the Rafah crossing to alleviate the suffering of Palestinians wanting to travel, students, patients, residents in third countries and pilgrims," he added in a statement.
Israel has for years refused exit visas for all but a tiny minority in Gaza, making Rafah the sole window on the world for almost all of the enclave's 1.7 million Palestinians, with some 800 people a day using the terminal to reach Egypt.
Since the closure, thousands have been stranded, although Cairo did order a brief opening on Friday to allow Palestinians trapped in Egypt to return home.
Egypt said on Monday it would open the crossing temporarily yet again, but just for three days, mainly to permit travel for humanitarian cases such as Palestinians seeking medical care abroad, and students, a Hamas official said.
"If Palestine was not a top priority for you, you should change direction," Hammad said in an unusually sharp rebuke.
Hamas believed Mursi would usher in a new period of harmony between Gaza and Cairo, but that has yet to materialize because of strategic considerations involving Egypt's 1979 peace treaty with Israel and related military aid from the United States.
Tunnel clashes
Immediately after the Sinai killings, Hamas ordered the closure of around 1,000 smuggling tunnels along its border with Egypt to prevent possible infiltration by attackers.
Several tunnels have remained operational bringing food, fuel and construction materials into Gaza, but Hamas has said it would be willing to see all the underground passages closed if Egypt agreed to defy Israel and let goods flow through Rafah.
Israel maintains a strict control of all imports into Gaza. Mubarak, deeply suspicious of the Islamists, was happy to support the Gaza blockade.
In a call underscoring deep fissures within Palestinian society, Hamas's political foes have urged Egypt to destroy all the tunnels and starve the Islamist group of the multi-million dollar duties it imposes on smuggled produce.
"These tunnels, which solidified the division of Palestine in Gaza, have for some time been a threat to Egypt's national security and the unity of the Palestinian people," said Tayeb Abdel-Rahim, a top aide to President Mahmoud Abbas.
Abbas governs only in the nearby West Bank after Hamas defeated his forces in Gaza in a brief civil war in 2007.
"Illegal smuggling comes at the expense of the legitimate interests of our nation and its citizens," he added. His comments were denounced by Hamas, which called the tunnels a "lifeline" for Gaza's people.
12 aug 2012
Hamas: No Egyptian proof of Gaza involvement in Sinai crime
Hamas said that it has not been proven that any Palestinian from Gaza was involved in the killing of 16 Egyptian soldiers in the Sinai.
The movement, in a press statement on Sunday, charged the media with increasing tensions and worsening relations with Egypt through spreading rumors and allegations without verification.
The statement appreciated the wise Egyptian position in dealing with the incident and in not aggravating the crisis.
The tunnels are the feasible means to ease the Israeli siege on children and sick people of Gaza Strip, the statement said, adding that opening the Rafah crossing for people and goods movement is an official and civilized alternative for the tunnels.
The movement, in a press statement on Sunday, charged the media with increasing tensions and worsening relations with Egypt through spreading rumors and allegations without verification.
The statement appreciated the wise Egyptian position in dealing with the incident and in not aggravating the crisis.
The tunnels are the feasible means to ease the Israeli siege on children and sick people of Gaza Strip, the statement said, adding that opening the Rafah crossing for people and goods movement is an official and civilized alternative for the tunnels.
Bardawil: PA call for closure of tunnels an opportunistic policy
Hamas leader Dr. Salah Al-Bardawil considered the PA in Ramallah's call for the tunnels' closure to tighten the siege on Gaza as an opportunistic policy that contradicts with the national responsibility.
Bardawil said, in a press statement on Saturday, that the tunnels were an emergency relief to the people of Gaza who suffer from the Israeli siege.
"We are sure that the wise Egyptian leadership would not leave the Palestinian people under siege," he added.
Bardawil expressed his condemnation of the PA's opportunism, calling on it to stop participating in the siege imposed on the Palestinian people.
For its part, the Palestinian Ahrar Movement considered the PA call as an incitement for the continuation of the siege on Gaza.
While the Palestinian people and factions have been demanding an end to the siege, the PA called for its continuation, the movement stated in a press release on Saturday.
The movement condemned the PA's call for closure of the tunnels, calling on the Egyptian presidency and government to work for an end to the unjust siege imposed on Gaza for long years.
For his turn, Taher al-Nunu, a spokesman for the Palestinian government, stated that the PA's call proves its involvement in the Israeli siege on Gaza and in deepening the Palestinian division for the sake of winning narrow partisan gains.
Bardawil said, in a press statement on Saturday, that the tunnels were an emergency relief to the people of Gaza who suffer from the Israeli siege.
"We are sure that the wise Egyptian leadership would not leave the Palestinian people under siege," he added.
Bardawil expressed his condemnation of the PA's opportunism, calling on it to stop participating in the siege imposed on the Palestinian people.
For its part, the Palestinian Ahrar Movement considered the PA call as an incitement for the continuation of the siege on Gaza.
While the Palestinian people and factions have been demanding an end to the siege, the PA called for its continuation, the movement stated in a press release on Saturday.
The movement condemned the PA's call for closure of the tunnels, calling on the Egyptian presidency and government to work for an end to the unjust siege imposed on Gaza for long years.
For his turn, Taher al-Nunu, a spokesman for the Palestinian government, stated that the PA's call proves its involvement in the Israeli siege on Gaza and in deepening the Palestinian division for the sake of winning narrow partisan gains.
21 june 2012
Brigades: 2 Hamas militants die inspecting bombed tunnel
Muhammad al-Khalidi 26 (L) Thaer al-Bik 30
Two Hamas militants died Thursday after inhaling gas in a tunnel bombed by Israel two days earlier, the Al-Qassam Brigades said.
Thaer al-Bik, 30, and Muhammad al-Khalidi, 26, on Thursday went to inspect a tunnel in northern Gaza that was damaged Tuesday by an Israeli airstrike, the brigades said in a statement.
Members al-Bik and al-Khalidi inhaled an unidentified gas in the tunnel and died from suffocation, the group said.
On Sunday evening, Israel bombed a site used by the Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, south of Gaza
City, Palestinian medics said. Israel's army said it hit "a terror activity site" in the area.
Over the next three days, eight Palestinians -- including two Al-Qassam Brigades fighters -- were killed in a series of Israeli airstrikes and tank shelling.
Militants in Gaza fired a volley of rockets across the border. The Al-Qassam Brigades joined the confrontation on Tuesday, launching its first rockets in over a year.
It claims to have fired 120 projectiles at Israeli military sites around Gaza before agreeing to an Egypt-brokered truce on Wednesday night.
Hamas leader Ayman Taha told Ma'an that the party wanted a truce to avoid Israeli attacks against Palestinians but added "aggression cannot pass without punishment."
"The Al-Qassam Brigades did not put its weapons down and it is there in the field and will respond to any Israeli aggression at the appropriate place and time," Taha said.
Hamas usually holds its fire under an unofficial truce with Israel, and discourages smaller militant groups from firing at Israel.
Twelve Injured In Tunnel Accident
Palestinian medical sources reported that twelve residents were wounded, on Thursday before noon, after a siege-busting tunnel collapsed, east of the Sheikh Zayed area, in the northern part of the Gaza Strip.
The Quds Net News Agency reported that the twelve residents suffocated under the rubble, and were rescued and transferred to Kamal Adwan Hospital suffering moderate injuries.
It is worth mentioning that more than 200 Palestinians have been killed in similar tunnel incidents, and more than 800 have been injured since 2006. The Palestinians started digging tunnels and after Israel enforced its deadly siege on the coastal region.
The siege has left Gazan hospitals out of basic and specialized supplies and equipment, an issue that has led to the death of more than 400 patients, including infants and children.
Thaer al-Bik, 30, and Muhammad al-Khalidi, 26, on Thursday went to inspect a tunnel in northern Gaza that was damaged Tuesday by an Israeli airstrike, the brigades said in a statement.
Members al-Bik and al-Khalidi inhaled an unidentified gas in the tunnel and died from suffocation, the group said.
On Sunday evening, Israel bombed a site used by the Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, south of Gaza
City, Palestinian medics said. Israel's army said it hit "a terror activity site" in the area.
Over the next three days, eight Palestinians -- including two Al-Qassam Brigades fighters -- were killed in a series of Israeli airstrikes and tank shelling.
Militants in Gaza fired a volley of rockets across the border. The Al-Qassam Brigades joined the confrontation on Tuesday, launching its first rockets in over a year.
It claims to have fired 120 projectiles at Israeli military sites around Gaza before agreeing to an Egypt-brokered truce on Wednesday night.
Hamas leader Ayman Taha told Ma'an that the party wanted a truce to avoid Israeli attacks against Palestinians but added "aggression cannot pass without punishment."
"The Al-Qassam Brigades did not put its weapons down and it is there in the field and will respond to any Israeli aggression at the appropriate place and time," Taha said.
Hamas usually holds its fire under an unofficial truce with Israel, and discourages smaller militant groups from firing at Israel.
Twelve Injured In Tunnel Accident
Palestinian medical sources reported that twelve residents were wounded, on Thursday before noon, after a siege-busting tunnel collapsed, east of the Sheikh Zayed area, in the northern part of the Gaza Strip.
The Quds Net News Agency reported that the twelve residents suffocated under the rubble, and were rescued and transferred to Kamal Adwan Hospital suffering moderate injuries.
It is worth mentioning that more than 200 Palestinians have been killed in similar tunnel incidents, and more than 800 have been injured since 2006. The Palestinians started digging tunnels and after Israel enforced its deadly siege on the coastal region.
The siege has left Gazan hospitals out of basic and specialized supplies and equipment, an issue that has led to the death of more than 400 patients, including infants and children.
14 june 2012
Palestinian worker dies in tunnel accident
Ghassan Radwan 40
A Palestinian worker died and another was wounded inside a tunnel on the Gaza borders with Egypt after barrels filled with gravel fell on them on Wednesday night.
Spokesman for the ambulance and emergency services Adham Abu Salmiya said that Ghassan Radwan, 40, died in a tunnel near Rafah while his colleague Kamal Abu Reida, 40, was injured in the same incident.
More than 200 Palestinians have died in tunnels since 2006 after the Israeli occupation tightened its siege on the coastal enclave and inhabitants had to smuggle goods into it to meet the acute shortage in different commodities.
A Palestinian worker died and another was wounded inside a tunnel on the Gaza borders with Egypt after barrels filled with gravel fell on them on Wednesday night.
Spokesman for the ambulance and emergency services Adham Abu Salmiya said that Ghassan Radwan, 40, died in a tunnel near Rafah while his colleague Kamal Abu Reida, 40, was injured in the same incident.
More than 200 Palestinians have died in tunnels since 2006 after the Israeli occupation tightened its siege on the coastal enclave and inhabitants had to smuggle goods into it to meet the acute shortage in different commodities.
7 june 2012
Palestinian Killed In Tunnel Accident In Rafah
No name
Palestinian medical sources reported Thursday that a Palestinian was killed and another was injured when a siege-busting tunnel, on the Gaza Egypt border, collapse while they were working inside it.
The Higher Committee for Medical and Emergency services reported that the killed resident is in his twenties.
It is worth mentioning that more than 200 Palestinians have been killed in similar tunnel incidents, and more than 800 have been injured since 2006.
The Palestinians started digging tunnels and after Israel enforced its deadly siege on the coastal region.
The siege has left Gazan hospitals out of basic and specialized supplies and equipment, an issue that has led to the death of more than 400 patients, including infants and children.
Palestinian medical sources reported Thursday that a Palestinian was killed and another was injured when a siege-busting tunnel, on the Gaza Egypt border, collapse while they were working inside it.
The Higher Committee for Medical and Emergency services reported that the killed resident is in his twenties.
It is worth mentioning that more than 200 Palestinians have been killed in similar tunnel incidents, and more than 800 have been injured since 2006.
The Palestinians started digging tunnels and after Israel enforced its deadly siege on the coastal region.
The siege has left Gazan hospitals out of basic and specialized supplies and equipment, an issue that has led to the death of more than 400 patients, including infants and children.
27 may 2012
Two workers injured in tunnel fall including one seriously
Two Palestinian workers fell in a tunnel while working inside it in Rafah, to the southernmost tip of the Gaza Strip, on Saturday.
Local sources said that the two workers are in their twenties and were taken to hospital.
Adham Abu Salmiya, the spokesman for ambulance and emergency services, said that one of them was seriously injured while the other’s injuries were moderate.
He underlined that 170 citizens were killed in similar accidents in the tunnels while 900 others were injured since 2006.
He noted that Palestinians were forced to dig tunnels to smuggle in badly needed commodities that were in shortage due to the oppressive Israeli siege on the coastal enclave that was tightened since that date.
Local sources said that the two workers are in their twenties and were taken to hospital.
Adham Abu Salmiya, the spokesman for ambulance and emergency services, said that one of them was seriously injured while the other’s injuries were moderate.
He underlined that 170 citizens were killed in similar accidents in the tunnels while 900 others were injured since 2006.
He noted that Palestinians were forced to dig tunnels to smuggle in badly needed commodities that were in shortage due to the oppressive Israeli siege on the coastal enclave that was tightened since that date.
20 may 2012
Palestinian worker dies in tunnel
Nader Omar
A Palestinian citizen working in digging tunnels under the Egyptian-Palestinian borders near Rafah to the south of Gaza Strip died in one of those tunnels on Sunday.
Adham Abu Salmiya, the spokesman for emergency and ambulance services, said that Nader Omar died after falling in one of the tunnels.
He said that another citizen was hospitalized in a separate incident after suffering an electric shock in another tunnel.
More than 200 Palestinian citizens died in the tunnels ever since the Israeli siege was clamped on the coastal enclave in 2006.
A Palestinian citizen working in digging tunnels under the Egyptian-Palestinian borders near Rafah to the south of Gaza Strip died in one of those tunnels on Sunday.
Adham Abu Salmiya, the spokesman for emergency and ambulance services, said that Nader Omar died after falling in one of the tunnels.
He said that another citizen was hospitalized in a separate incident after suffering an electric shock in another tunnel.
More than 200 Palestinian citizens died in the tunnels ever since the Israeli siege was clamped on the coastal enclave in 2006.