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5.12.08
BBC carries a report from one of the journalists who entered Gaza on Thursday.
The journalist notes that the UN describes the situation there as ‘food insecurity’, that UN food depots are empty, and that all Thursday’s aid went straight into distribution centres – ‘there’s no slack in the system’.
He also notes that Gaza TV filmed their arrival – why aren’t they getting their crucial reports out more widely, or into news syndication sites?
According to their press release, the Free Gaza Movement are joining Qatar Charity in sending a Qatari boat to Israel, as previously noted.
FGM say they’re sailing on Saturday with $2m of medical supplies (QC had suggested previously that they’d leave Cyprus on Friday) – let’s hope for a smooth passage.
Just to collect all these boats together:
* Qatar’s boat to sail from Cyprus (arriving Saturday or Sunday)
* Israel’s boat to sail from Haifa (arriving Sunday)
* Turkey’s boat to sail from Istanbul (no arrival date announced yet)
* Jordan’s boat to sail at some future date
* Libya’s boat now returning to Libya
Buried in this Reliefweb article is an (ambiguous) mention of the Palestinian Authority, run by Fatah, sending two trucks of medical aid to Gaza, run by Hamas.
Now there’s a news story.
Spain's International Development and Cooperation Agency (AECID) has pledged €3m to be used for buying medicine and providing pharmacy management for 'urgent health needs'. It will be distributed through the existing PEGASE network – the European Union's mechanism for transferring resources to oPt.
Spain provided €20m in the same way earlier this year for civil service salaries, as part of their €240m overall pledge at Annapolis last December.
Spain, represented by their Consul-General to Israel, and the Palestinian Finance Authority, represented by Salam Fayyad, and based in the West Bank, signed the deal in Jerusalem.
Despite PEGASE being an efficient route to distribution in the West Bank, the lack of fluid relations between Abbas and Hamas may slow distribution to Gaza.
UNRWA (via Reliefweb) and BBC (quoting an unnamed Israeli source) provide some details of yesterday’s convoy:
* Of the 40 trucks allowed through, 6 were from Jordan
* 10 further trucks carrying oil and tinned meat were refused entry
* Fuel for the power station was transferred
* Journalists were also allowed into Gaza
UNRWA has pointed out that it requires 15 dedicated trucks of aid daily to continue its work, and has only received 37 in the past month.
More as we get it.
AP reports that as part of yesterday’s aid convoy Israel allowed the lifting of a ban on journalists into Gaza, instituted some 4 weeks ago.
Israel has also lifted a what appeared to be a ‘formal’ ban on aid workers, although there’s been a steady trickle of 10-20 aid worker entries and exits each day over the period.
And in response to the Palestinian Monetary Authority’s repeated calls for more hard cash with which to pay salaries, Israel says it is considering sending a further $35m. Whether this would be a loan or a simple injection of funds is unclear.
4.12.08
Statistics, details, Israel’s explanations and a helpful longer-term overview here.
Looks like Jordan’s trying to learn from Libya’s experience by checking with Israel first if it’s OK to fuel up a boat laden with perishable supplies and send it to Gaza before it actually sets sail. Fingers crossed they say yes though.
This article implies that the UN believes there’s no aid going into Gaza from anywhere – Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, Turkey or Israel. (See top left, this page.)
No need to question whether Israel has diplomatic ties with Israel… but do its citizens?
A group of activists, including leaders of Arab communities in Israel, are sailing from Jaffa to Gaza on Sunday with a boatful of aid. Maybe they could stop by el-Arish on the way…
This comprehensive article in today’s Jerusalem Post details an ongoing discussion between health officials in Israel and the WHO over whether Israel is doing the right thing by encouraging Gazans to apply for medical aid permits.
In a nutshell: the number of permits granted went from 5k in 2006 to 7k in 2007 and nearly 9k in Q1+2 2008… but the proportion of permits granted went from 90% in 2006 to 66% in the same 2008 period.
So is that more aid, or less? You decide…
Yesterday’s summary of crossings, courtesy of Israel’s Coordination Office for Government Activities in the Territories:
Bad news:
Nahal Oz, Karni, Sufa, Kerem Shalom all closed. No goods.
Good news:
Erez open. 94 patients and chaperones went for treatment in Israeli hospitals.
17 aid workers entered Gaza and 6 left for Israel.
Despite the MEN report earlier today, aid workers have been entering and leaving Gaza consistently throughout the blockade; it’s just press corps members who have had very limited access.
This one will run and run…
Libya petitioned the UN Security Council to condone Israel’s ‘act of piracy’ in turning the al-Marwa away from docking in Gaza. AFP reports that the SC refused to officially condemn Israel, and Israel’s Ambassador to the UN, Gabriela Shalev, noted:
“No member State of this Council, nor any other member of the United Nations, would allow a shipment originating from a hostile state towards a territory that serves as a launching pad for terrorist attacks against its civilians.”
Seven of the 15 UNSC members raised their concerns over the deteriorating support for, and conditions in, Gaza, and noted their disapproval of Israel’s blockade.
BBC and Middle East News are reporting that Israel has authorised either 40 or 70 lorries into Gaza today. More news as we find out.
Journalists were also allowed into Gaza last Thursday along with the aid; presumably Israel’s feeling, following their statement earlier today, is that if it’s safe enough to send in aid it’s safe enough to allow in journalists.
Following the confusion (public and private) over Libya’s boat, Israel has published this statement:
Media attention was focused this week on Marwa, a Libyan ship bound for Gaza, which was refused entry by the Israeli navy and is now sitting at dock in Egypt.
Israel has repeatedly made clear the procedures required to transfer humanitarian aid via Gaza. All UN members, including those who do not hold diplomatic relations with Israel (including Libya) are well informed that aid can be transferred one of three ways:
Israel intends to transfer humanitarian aid to Gaza on a daily basis. However, as a result of Hamas and other terrorist factions targeting the crossings with constant rocket and mortar fire since 5 November, Israel had no option but to temporarily close crossings.
Although the multilaterally-endorsed ‘period of calm’ is still ongoing, over 200 rockets and mortars have been fired into Israel in the past 4 weeks. One, an Iranian Grad rocket fired in mid-November, injured 8 soldiers. Hamas blames Israel for unannounced incursions into Gaza; however, Israel’s only incursion during this period, met with heavily-armed resistance, was to destroy a tunnel which Hamas admitted was intended for the kidnap of Israeli soldiers.
Israel has maintained a semi-regular supply of humanitarian aid into Gaza, sometimes under direct rocket fire. Israel allows patients to leave the Gaza Strip for medical treatment in Israeli hospitals every day, and supplies Gaza with water and 70% of its electricity.
3.12.08
Bad news:
No food or medicine into Gaza yesterday. Nahal Oz, Karni, Sufa and Kerem Shalom all closed.
Good news:
Erez open for humanitarian passage.
47 patients and chaperones went off to Israeli hospitals.
11 international aid workers/press corps members entered Gaza, and 10 left for Israel.
IRINNews publishes a quick and effective analysis of the various sources of power to Gaza and what happens when it gets there.
Three points of information to note:
* 1, that (as you dear readers know) the World Bank’s assessment that only one goods crossing serves the whole of Gaza is incorrect (there are currently 3 crossings from Israel and one from Egypt)
* 2, that despite Israel bizarrely bombing the Gaza power plant in 2006, Egypt then supplied all the parts necessary to fix it and offered to send experts to carry out the work
* and 3, that despite the caption under the final image, we all know that the last (insufficient) fuel delivery was made last Wednesday.
2.12.08
The Israeli Coordination Office for Government Activities in the Territories has issued a statement about why the crossings are closed:
“Since November 5th, more than 200 rockets and mortar shells were fired by the different Palestinian terrorist factions from the Gaza Strip into Israel, putting the lives of the Israeli civilian population under threat and insecurity.
This risk and threat to the crossings became more evident over the last weekend (27th-29th November), on which in four different occasions the attacks were directed against the different crossings (Nahal Oz, Karni & Erez) and their vicinity, and also on 30th November (a rocket launched towards the Kerem shalom crossing). In one of these incidents 7 IDF soldiers were injured (of which two suffered serious injuries).
These Palestinian actions are the reason for the continued disruption to the activities of the crossings between Israel and the Gaza Strip.
We wish to emphasize our continued willingness to reopen the crossings, and to resume their activities, provided that the continued Palestinian breach of the Lull arrangement will end immediately.”
Qatar is joining the boat party. And it’s a yes to Israeli relations with Qatar too. Any more for any more?
Not a great day yesterday.
Bad news:
Nahal Oz (fuel), Karni, Sufa and Kerem Shalom (goods) all closed.
No food or medical aid.
Good news:
Erez (people) open.
34 patients and chaperones went to Israeli hospitals for treatment.
6 aid workers/press corps members entered Gaza; 2 left.
Israel and Egypt continued their flow of electricity into Gaza.
In the wake of Libya’s efforts, Turkey is sending a boat full of campaigners, food and medicine too, reports Xinhua (via Hurriyet). Turkey and Israel enjoy a strong diplomatic relationship. Let’s hope they rang first.
Neither Egypt nor Israel seems to know what to do with the Libyan boat.
The Guardian squarely accuses Israel of wrongdoing in its headline, but both its article and the BBC report that both Israel and Egypt have stopped the Marwa’s aid cargo from entering Gaza. Israel reportedly warned the boat not to approach, at which point it went to Egypt. Egypt seems unwilling to offload the aid and allow it entry through Rafah. Libya’s initial concerns over threats from submarines, fighter jets and covert communications jamming seem to have been unfounded.
Meanwhile, hundreds of Palestinians waited with empty trucks at Gaza port yesterday for hours, not knowing whether it would arrive or not.
Let’s hope it gets through soon.
UNRWA reports that OPEC’s Fund for International Development (OFID) is making an immediate $3m donation to UNRWA works in Gaza, to be used for food aid and medicine.
OFID have given a further $7m to UNRWA projects around the Middle East in the past and their website notes $18m in loans to Palestine up to October 2008.
1.12.08
AFP carries a story intimating that the Libyan aid ship did not have clearance to enter Gaza’s coastal waters from the Israeli authorities, and implies that Libya had not sought such clearance before sending the ship on its way.
Libya and Israel do not enjoy diplomatic relations. The Free Gaza boats may have had more luck since they sailed from Cyprus under British flags (both of which have diplomatic relations).
Infolive.tv cites a Libyan state source claiming that Israel sent two boats, a jet and a submarine out to stop the Libyan boat this morning. Xinhua further reports that the boat is considering resailing from its current port of el-Arish, northern Egypt, if Egypt refuses to unload and send the aid in by road.
Bad news:
Nahal Oz, Karni, Sufa and Kerem Shalom all closed. No food/medical aid into Gaza.
Good news:
44 patients and chaperones entered Israel for treatment
4 international aid workers/press corps members entered Gaza, and 8 left for Israel.
Israel and Egypt maintained the flow of electricity into Gaza.
More aid later this week, we hope.
Reuters reports (via Reliefweb) that the Libyan ship which left port last week carrying 3000 tons of aid has chosen to divert itself to Egypt rather than attempt to dock in Gaza.
Reuters notes that before the current blockade, Israel used to allow ships to dock in Gaza. The Free Gaza movement famously made port in Gaza earlier this year, and were the first ships to dock since the Hamas takeover in June 2007.
On the Libyan boats: "They understood that the navy was there and decided to turn around," said Andy David, a Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman. "We have a very clear policy (on the blockade) which is constantly publicised."
