Israel considers halting Palestinian exports and imports

The Israeli occupation government is planning to suspend exports and imports with the Palestinians in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, due to the Palestinian decision to suspend imports of Israeli calves, Al-Wattan Voice reported on Friday.

According to the Israeli Public Broadcaster KAN, Al-Watan Voice have revealed that Israel is proposing to stop passing commodities from abroad to the occupied Palestinian Territories, as well as prohibiting the export of olive oil and dates from the Occupied Territories.

KAN claim that there are many voices against the decision made in September by the PA prime minister, Mohammed Shtayyeh, to stop importing calves from Israel.

READ: PA seeks to replace Israel goods with Arab items

“We are stuck with tens of thousands of calves, in which we invested tens of millions, which have reached the weight that they’re ready to sell, and we can’t do anything with them,” Doron Beidich, chairman of the Association of Calf Raisers, told Al-Monitor.

“A whole economic branch that provides for hundreds of families is on the brink of collapse,” he announced. “We are talking about 400 families and 5,000 people employed indirectly, who make a living from this industry.”

The PA’s decision to ban the purchase of calves from Israel is reportedly part of a drive led by Shtayyeh, to disengage from the Israeli economy.