A new set of restrictions on importing Israeli-manufactured goods into Gaza was announced on Sunday by Gaza's Ministry of the National Economy.
Israeli-made clothing may no longer be brought into Gaza, and other items will be considered on a case-by-case basis. The measures will be in effect "until further notice."
The Hamas government’s ban on Israeli clothing is apparently the result of high demand among Gazan consumers; when a luxury mall in Gaza City held its grand opening last July, prominent among the featured goods on sale was made-in-Israel men's clothing.
Among the items whose import into Gaza now require approval are home and office furniture, plastic products, tissues and toilet paper, juices and soft drinks, chemical products, canned beans, biscuits and candies, and packaging materials.
Gaza Happily Takes Israeli Goods
Israel’s Foreign Ministry prepared a detailed account last year, listing the aid that Israel provides Gaza. “Despite attacks by Hamas," the report begins, "Israel maintains an ongoing humanitarian corridor for the transfer of food and humanitarian supplies to Gaza, used by internationally recognized organizations including the United Nations and the Red Cross.”
The items transferred into Gaza via the Israeli crossings include large quantities of essential food items like baby formula, wheat, meat, dairy products and other perishables; fertilizers that cannot be used to make explosives, eggs for reproduction, potato seeds, bees, flower industry equipment, and more.
The report noted that no PA Arab is denied medical care in Israel – despite the fact that since 2005, Palestinian terrorists have exploited medical care arrangements more than 20 times to carry out terror attacks.
It further noted that about 20% of the population in Gaza owns a personal computer - more than in Portugal, Brazil, Saudi Arabia and Russia.
A United Nations report of May 2010 states that while 10% of Gaza’s electricity comes from Egypt and 18% is home-produced, nearly 3/4 of Gaza’s electricity needs – 72% - is supplied by Israel. Hamas has announced no plans to boycott Israeli electricity.