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An Israel Defense Forces soldier and a Palestinian boy at the A-Ram checkpoint outside of Jerusalem (Archive).
Last update - 14:56 22/01/2008
UN: Despite Israel's promises, West Bank barriers have increased
By Akiva Eldar, Haaretz Correspondent
Tags: West Bank, Palestinians 

A United Nations report released Tuesday shows that there has been a six-percent rise in the number of barriers in the West Bank, despite pledges by Israel to reduce this amount. Click here to see the full report

The report, which comes alongside the Consolidated Appeal to raise $462 million for the Palestinian population, contains a particularly pessimistic summary of 2007 in the territories.

Among its findings:
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  • Despite the promises to reduce them, the number of fixed physical barriers in the West Bank have increased from 528 to 563.

  • 49 percent of Palestinian households in the West Bank and 79 percent in the Gaza Strip live in poverty.

  • 34 percent of Palestinians face "food insecurity" (which is defined as households with income and consumption of $1.6 per day).

  • The water supply dropped last year to 75 liters per person a day in the Strip and to 80.5 liters in the West Bank, approximately half the international standard.

  • Some 10,000 Palestinians who live in enclaves west of the West Bank fence are cut off from vital health and education services and from family and social networks.

    While Palestinians and Israelis are arguing whether the cutting off the electricity supply in Gaza will lead to a humanitarian disaster or if it is just a cynical attempt by Hamas to gain points on the backs of unfortunate Palestinian children, the largest emergency appeal ever to raise funds to cover the basic needs of the Palestinian population in the territories was to be announced Tuesday.

    The consolidated appeal being planned by 12 UN agencies and 28 nongovernmental organizations, including 15 international ones, is the third largest in the world, larger than the appeals on behalf of the residents of Somalia, Zimbabwe and Chad.

    Doomsayers in the human rights organizations warned of the "Somalization" of Gaza, with regard to the collapse of the central power and the demise of the rule of law.

    In the meantime, from a humanitarian perspective, Somalia is already here, right on our doorstep. Only the consolidated appeals for Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo rank ahead of it.

    The organizational coalition was to launch Tuesday a consolidated appeal in Jerusalem to raise contributions amounting to $462 million. Less than two months after the Annapolis Conference and the meeting of donor countries in Paris, they indicate a huge and saddening gap between U.S. President George Bush's festive declarations about peace and the sad reality.

    The heads of the organizations claim that if there is not a dramatic turnabout in the situation in the territories, the seven billion dollars the donors promised in promise will go down the drain. If the policy of closures and the regime of roadblocks continue, even 70 billion dollars won't help the Palestinian Authority under the leadership of Mahmoud Abbas.

    According to the report on 2007, to be released Tuesday alongside the announcement of the consolidated appeal, the situation in the territories can only get worse.

    "Continuation of the closures in the occupied territories will lead to further deterioration in the living conditions of 3.8 million Palestinians," the document stated.

    "The restrictions on the movement of people and goods is choking the Palestinian economy and affecting quality of life in the occupied territories. Because of all this, even the UN agencies and other humanitarian organizations are facing new obstacles, increased operating costs, and restrictions on the distribution of aid to beneficiaries in the West Bank and Gaza Strip."

    After every meeting between Abbas and Olmert over the last few months, the prime minister promised his colleague that he would reduce the number of roadblocks, which are disrupting the lives of West Bank residents. They said it was important to show the Palestinians the difference between Fatahland and Hamastan. But something is happening to the promises on the way from Jerusalem to Nablus. The report confirms the claims of the Palestinians and of the Israeli human rights organizations that only did the situation not improve, it even got worse.

    "Despite repeated pledges by the Israeli authorities to ease the closure regime, the number of physical obstacles in the West Bank increased from 528 to 563 between January and September 2007. These fixed physical obstacles are augmented by flying checkpoints, estimated at 560 per month, as of 6 October. The closure regime, which controls and restricts access to workplaces, markets, health and education services, and impedes normal economic activity, is the main cause of the deteriorating humanitarian situation."

    Those who claim that the checkpoints and the separation fence save human lives will be glad to read in the new report that in the preceding year there was a drop in the number of casualties on both sides.

    From January to September 2007, 269 Palestinian were killed by IDF fire, including 38 children, as opposed to 464 killed in the same period in 2006. The number of injured also dropped from 2,450 to 1,428. The number of Israeli casualties dropped from 22 killed and 316 injured to eight killed and 279 injured.

    On the other hand, there was a dramatic increase in the number of killed and injured as a result of internal Palestinian violence, primarily in the Gaza Strip: 439 killed, compared to 70, and 2,315 injured, compared to 374 in 2006.

    Roadblocks and the fence

    The roadblocks and the fence of course have another side. The report notes that almost all of the obstacles that create the regime of restricted movement are located along the length of a vast road network reserved first and foremost for the Israeli residents. This is a result of the fact that around 40 percent of the West Bank is covered by settlements, outposts, military infrastructure, nature reserves and closed areas west of the fence. Even the route of the fence was adjusted to meet the local residents needs.

    According to the figures, around 10,000 Palestinians who live in enclaves west of the fence, on the "Israeli" side, are cut off from vital health and education services and from family and social networks. A large number of Palestinians, mainly farmers who live east of the fence, need "visitors' permits" to reach their lands, water sources and other resources in the closed area.

    A survey taken among 67 communities affected by the fence in northern Samaria found that only 20 percent of those who worked land along the Seam Line in the past currently hold permits. The regime of restricted movement and the fence is causing the splitting of markets, an increase in transport charges and is threatening livelihoods from the agricultural sector.

    According to the report, 34 percent of Palestinians face "food insecurity" (which is defined as households with income and consumption of 1.6 dollars per day). This is without factoring in the last stage of the crisis that has yet to appear in the report: UN relief agency data indicates that 57.5 percent of babies aged 36 months and 44.9 percent of pregnant women in the Gaza Strip (and in the West Bank, 37.1 percent of babies, and 31.1 percent of pregnant women) suffer from anemia due to a shortage of iron. Access to medical care, particularly to monitor pregnancies, is affected by health workers' strikes, the restrictions on movement and the declining economic situation.

    Hospitals have cut back on the services they offer, mostly due to a shortage of drugs and equipment. The water supply dropped last year from 75 liters per person per day in the Gaza Strip, and to 80.5 liters in the West Bank, which is about half the international standards of 150 liters per person per day. Around two thirds of Palestinians are not hooked up to the sewage system and 70-80 percent of the domestic wastewater flows into the surrounding areas untreated.

    Until the middle of September, 75,000 workers were dismissed from the private sector in the Gaza Strip following the Israeli government's refusal to make arrangements for the import of raw materials to the area (manufacturers in Gaza import 95 percent of the raw materials). The cumulative losses totaled some $50 million. Thus almost half the households in the West Bank and 80 percent in the Gaza Strip live in poverty and more than 80 percent of Gaza residents are dependent on agencies such as the UN Relief and Work Agency (UNRWA) and the World Food Program.

    The continuation of the closure of the external borders of Gaza will further intensify the dependence on those organizations. In mid-2007, the recorded unemployment rate in the West Bank reached 22.6 percent and in Gaza reached 32.3 percent (the numbers are incomplete, as many have stopped looking for employment).

    This year there was an additional increase in the number of school dropouts, especially among junior high school boys and high school girls. There is a declining presence of girls in the classrooms and students' achievements are in a downward spiral.

    In the Gaza Strip, 80 percent of students in grades four to nine failed a UN relief agency survey; 90 percent of ninth grade students failed a basic math test; 53.3 percent of mothers in the West Bank and 48.5 percent in the Gaza Strip reported that one of their children aged 5-17 had been exposed to violence during 2005.

    Women and teenage girls are suffering due to the crisis because of higher levels of domestic violence.

    Whoever is unable to provide the public with the most basic goods, bread and water, health and education, cannot provide Israel with painful concessions on the issue of Jerusalem and refugees, borders and settlements. According to the most up-to-date figures to be released this morning, 57 percent of Palestinian households live in poverty, 49 percent in the West Bank and 79 percent in the Gaza Strip.

    Max Gaylard, the senior UN humanitarian coordinator adds: "The tight regime of closures affects not only the economic situation of households in the territories, but also erodes the basic self-dignity of the population."

    Manuel Bessler, the director of the UN office for the coordination of humanitarian affairs (OCHA), adds that despite the encouraging developments on the political horizon, if the closures in the territories will continue, the situation is likely to deteriorate even further.

    No more thread

    Aysheh Abd al-Khader Ahmed, 66, supported 25 people for many years. However the rapid decline of the socio-economic situation in the Strip since Hamas gained power has severely affected the veteran merchant. For the first time in 12 years, she cannot make the repayments on the loans she took from UNRWA.

    "The hardest thing is that I have no idea when the situation will end," she says.

    Ahmed lives with her family in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood of Gaza. In 1979, she took her first steps as a merchant when she began selling secondhand clothes out of a small room in her home. Later, as the sewing industry in Gaza evolved, she sold women and children's clothing that was manufactured locally. She took her first loan from UN relief agency in 1994, when the organization launched its microfinance small loan program.

    Like many other merchants, Ahmed used to travel abroad to purchase popular items: clothes and cooking utensils in Egypt, traditional dresses and bedding in Jordan, and then sell them in Gaza.

    Before each trip she took out a loan from the UN relief agency. Over 12 years her business expanded and she managed to repay the loans without any difficulty (her monthly profit totaled around $500).

    Due to Hamas' victory in the elections, Israel closed the border between Egypt and the Gaza Strip and the government stopped paying workers' salaries.

    When Ahmed's three married sons stopped receiving salaries, the entire burden of supporting the family fell on her shoulders and amounted to much more than the income she earned from her small business could cover. Ahmed sold her inventory of Jordanian and Egyptian merchandise and tried at the same time to sell some of her embroidery work as well as some local products. But despite all her efforts, she was not able to make the loan repayments.

    Ahmed cannot buy from local manufacturers: "In the past I paid 20-25 shekels for a children's jacket, now it costs me more than 50 shekels," she says. "Every day our situation worsens. I'm very worried about the ability of such a large family to continue living in the current situation."
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      1.   Israel has the experts 12:22  |  Natallie Durson 22/01/08
      2.   Because of UN incompetence, Qassams have increased 12:28  |  Joe Sittizen 22/01/08
      3.   Time for UN to take the West Bank from Israel? 12:31  |  Michael 22/01/08
      4.   Primitive Accumulation 12:35  |  Rowan Berkeley 22/01/08
      5.   world is waking up to Israeli apartheid & war crimes 12:49  |  Jeremy Martin 22/01/08
      6.   The West Bank to Palestine 13:00  |  Markus 22/01/08
      7.   Checkpoints Save Lives 13:01  |  Yishai Kohen 22/01/08
      8.   U.N. Must Take Over Territories 13:38  |  MB 22/01/08
      9.   Where is this is likely to lead 13:41  |  Hubal 22/01/08
      10.   Nearing the end 13:43  |  Ahmed 22/01/08
      11.   too much guys... 13:54  |  Chris 22/01/08
      12.   Lets not forget something 13:55  |  Yonni 22/01/08
      13.   Surprise, Surprise...gap between what Israel says and does 13:57  |  Tim 22/01/08
      14.   #3 michael needs history lessons regarding britains obligations 14:02  |  v hardman 22/01/08
      15.   it fails to report absence of suicide bombers in israel 14:07  |  v hardman 22/01/08
      16.   12 Victor needs to learn manners. And to read. 14:15  |  Michael 22/01/08
      17.   Notice: when Palestinians kill, no mention of children casualties 14:19  |  AA 22/01/08
      18.   Well done Haaretz! 14:19  |  Chanalau, Tova 22/01/08
      19.   very bad it should be 99% or 100% 14:27  |  vladimir 22/01/08
      20.   akiva, all money will go to swiss banks, everybody knows that 14:38  |  vladimir 22/01/08
      21.   A UN `report` well timed 14:38  |  SystemF 22/01/08
      22.   ZIONISTS LIE HOW SHOCKING 14:43  |  JH 22/01/08
      23.   Poverty 14:50  |  Joe 22/01/08
      24.   @11 chris you are the last of all to criticize israel, you kill 14:53  |  vladimir 22/01/08
      25.   yes talkers/thinkers! it does seem that that 14:57  |  bozhidar balkas 22/01/08
      26.   israel should forbid UN in israel and WB. 14:57  |  vladimir 22/01/08
      27.   Israel would gladly give up Gaza 15:19  |  RF 22/01/08
      28.   Jewish Values at work? 15:19  |  POP 22/01/08
      29.   Lying - it`s what Israel does best 15:20  |  Clickfool 22/01/08
      30.   TO NO 2 JOE CITTIZZEN 15:22  |  DANNY. 22/01/08
      31.   TO NO 3 MICHEAL. 15:24  |  DANNY. 22/01/08
      32.   no one can trust a zionist..all liars killers theives 15:28  |  getting to know you 22/01/08
      33.   Maybe, Yishai - but??? 15:30  |  Murray 22/01/08
      34.   #14 The truth v hardman 15:32  |  Boycott 22/01/08
      35.   #3 MICHAEL NEEDS HISTORY LESSONS REGARDING BRITAINS OBLIGATIONS 15:46  |  paul harris 22/01/08
      36.   natalie 16:51  |  zayda 22/01/08
      37.   The Best Argument for An International Boycott 16:52  |  Yaakov Sullivan 22/01/08
      38.   boo hoo--let `em make peace and they`ll have richer lives 16:55  |  Maurice 22/01/08
      39.   I for one am happy about this report 17:09  |  Ben 22/01/08
      40.   un against israel 17:10  |  peter42y 22/01/08
      41.   14, 35 It`s the two-headed monster Victor and Paul! 17:15  |  Michael 22/01/08
      42.   #37 is yaakove still sleeping on gratings in 5th ave? 17:15  |  v hardman 22/01/08
      43.   It`s the spiritual poverty which engenders the material one here 17:22  |  Fortuna Benmayor 22/01/08
      44.   The reappearance of Paul Harris # 35 17:27  |  Clickfool 22/01/08
      45.   What Is Preventing Israel? 17:42  |  Yaakov Sullivan 22/01/08
      46.   As long as there are no rockets! 17:44  |  B 22/01/08
      47.   43. for columbia tuna: turn it up side down 17:47  |  you still lose 22/01/08
      48.   pederast sullivan wants cuban passport to serve 17:47  |  vladimir 22/01/08
      49.   Is "proud Zionist" an oxymoron? 17:48  |  Greg Barn 22/01/08
      50.   79% percent is probably the same as live off aid via the UN 17:49  |  Jo 22/01/08
      51.   #41 michael has britain moved on from magna carta? 17:49  |  v hardman 22/01/08
      52.   Arab households 17:56  |  Rozz 22/01/08
      53.   Rozz, no Israel Hasnt Let That Through Either 18:05  |  Yaakov Sullivan 22/01/08
      54.   Victor Paul 51. OK that`s it, I want my mandate back! 18:24  |  Michael 22/01/08
      55.   Umm Ahmed did very well under Israel`s "occupation" 19:12  |  Genuine Tosefta 22/01/08
      56.   Hard `man` /Harris and similar - you all miss the point 21:33  |  Don Camillo 22/01/08
      57.   Lies, lies and more lies 21:56  |  Ahmed 22/01/08
      58.   #54michael has completely lost it ! 22:13  |  v hardman 22/01/08
      59.   #56 the idiot don and if they dont ? 22:15  |  v hardman 22/01/08
      60.   #37 Yaakov, exactly right 22:40  |  Ben Alofs 22/01/08
      61.   They should be completely cut off from Israel in Entirety 22:40  |  Efox 22/01/08
      62.   Israeli promises = Lies 22:54  |  Neil 22/01/08
      63.   #35 Victorpaul Harrisman Both are with us again 23:13  |  Labhras 22/01/08