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| Israel-Palestine-Jordan |
| Israel lets clothes, shoes into besieged Gaza |
| 2010-04-05 |
| GAZA CITY - Israel allowed a shipment of clothes and shoes to enter the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip on Sunday for the first time in nearly two years, a Palestinian border official said. In other news today, Gaza Radio AccuTraffic notes congestion in all in-bound tunnels due to deliveries of guns, ammo and partly-assembled cars. “Israel allowed five trucks of shoes and five trucks of clothes to enter on Sunday for the first time since the summer of 2008,' Raid Fatuh, a Palestinian border official in charge of coordinating such shipments, told AFP. The Jewish state has sealed the territory of 1.5 million people off from all but vital aid since the Islamist movement Hamas seized power in June 2007, tightening sanctions imposed after the 2006 capture of an Israeli soldier. Large amounts of clothes, appliances and other basic goods are brought in however through smuggling tunnels beneath the Gaza-Egypt border, and although prices have gone up, there are no shortages of such goods. An Israeli military official confirmed the shipment and said it was part of a package of goods approved for UN-run projects in the impoverished territory. “Everything is coordinated with the UN so we are sure who is getting the clothes,' the official said on condition of anonymity. Perhaps they have those RFID inventory control tags sewn-in ... |
| Posted by:Steve White |