Israel to allow some raw materials into Gaza

EXCLUSIVE PICTURES

Workers from some factories in Gaza have expressed their joy at being able to return to work after the Israeli occupation allowed the entry of certain raw materials into the Strip. Materials being allowed in include granite used in kitchen and bathroom fitting as well as decoratively in homes, hotels and restaurants.

---

The owner of one of the factories that will benefit from this step forward is Abu Mohammad whose business has suffered hugely from the severe lack of raw materials in Gaza resulting from Israeli restrictions on their entry. Over the years, the situation has become so dire that Abu Mohammad was forced to lay off a significant portion of his work force. However, today’s news marks an anticipated improvement in the situation and the return of many of the factory’s former employees.

Currently, the Israeli occupation is in discussions over whether to allow lorries carrying essential materials into the Gaza Strip for factory owners whose businesses were destroyed during the war, who have lost millions of dollars and, as a consequence, have had to lay off thousands of workers. It is to allow in cement, iron and … as part of a trial and will then follow up on the uses of the materials before deciding whether reinstitute bans on their entry. This is being widely viewed as a racket for the continued crackdown on the residents of the Gaza Strip.

Gazans continue to try to obtain the basic necessities of their lives via the underground tunnel system through which goods are smuggled from neighbouring Egypt. The Israeli occupation cracks down on Gaza’s population by periodically bombarding the tunnels.

MEMO Photographer: Mohammed Asad