Gaza goods list: Cement in, gliders out
Foreign Ministry releases amended list of products, services Israel will allow into Strip as part of its efforts to alleviate residents' daily lives, while impeding efforts to carry out terror attacks. Black list includes weapons, dual-use items
The Foreign Ministry on Monday published the list of goods Israel will and will not allow into the Gaza Strip as part of its new policy of blockade mitigations.
The list was compiled by Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories Major-General Eitan Dangot and Yossi Gal, director-general of the Foreign Ministry, who explained that it follows Wassenaar Arrangement guidelines, as well as the Israeli law.
The Wassenaar Arrangement on Export Controls for Conventional Arms and Dual-Use Goods and Technologies, includes multilateral export control directives which 40 nations worldwide subscribe to. Israel is not one of the 40, but subscribes to the Wassenaar principles nonetheless.
The list of goods banned according to the Wassenaar Arrangement includes weapons of any kinds, as well as dual-use goods "which could be used to develop, produce to boost military capabilities."
Goods barred according to the Israeli law include technology or equipment which can be used by terror groups to produce weapons, such as chemicals used in the production of explosives, optical equipment – including lasers and nigh vision goggles – knives, light planes, aviation and navigation equipment, diving gear, gliders, sea crafts etc.
A third part of the list specifies various goods "whose delivery would remain under supervision."
"We have made great effort to ease the plight of civilian population and make things difficult for terror groups," said Gal.
Among the goods allowed into the Gaza Strip are cement, iron and cars, which would be transferred into the Strip via a coordinated effort between Israel, the Palestinian Authority and various international groups.
Major-General Dangot added that Kerem Shalom crossing in southern Gaza would serve as the main transport depot. Goods will also be transferred through Erez crossing in the Strip's north, and Karni crossing in central Gaza.
"We have increased the number of trucks going through Kerem Shalom to 160 a day," said Dangot. "Traffic volume in Karni has been increased to 120 trucks a day. We expect to see some 250 trucks enter Gaza in the next few weeks, and that would increase to 350. By 2011, we expect that 400 trucks will deliver goods to Gaza daily."
Dangot added that there are currently nine international projects planned fro Gaza, in addition to five ongoing ones, and that the cooperation with the PA now includes a special system meant to manage them.
"In several months there will be 45 projects. All of them would be carried out in cooperation with the PA and in a manner meant to maintain security," he concluded.
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