Gaza’s Imminent Explosion
By Dr. Elias Akleh

Gaza has been turned into a ticking bomb ready to explode any day. This started with US/Israel/Abbas trio conspiracy, according to Vanity Fair magazine, to topple the democratically elected Hamas-led Palestinian government. This resulted into Palestinian division and the isolation of Gaza Strip.

To finish off Hamas leadership Israel had borrowed Nazi siege tactics of Warsaw Ghetto, and implemented a stricter version of it against Gaza Strip. Israel had gradually decreased the imports of all vital substances to Gaza, and since June 2007 had completely closed Gaza’s five border crossings, leaving all 1.5 million Palestinians to die from starvation, thirst, pollution, and lack of medicine. Israel had cut off all fuel supplies to Gaza including all UN agencies such as UNRWA; the agency devoted to provide health, education and food supplies to poor families.

Without fuel to generate electricity Gaza’s 32 wells had stopped pumping drinking water, 4 thousand other wells stopped pumping agricultural water causing the dry up of all major crops. Sewage treatment pumps stopped functioning allowing sewage to be spilled into the ocean leading to coastal pollution. Bakeries stopped functioning for the lack of flour as well as fuel. Fishermen could not sail their boats, and those who could were sunk by Israeli gun boats. All goods and food stuff are forbidden entry into Gaza. People are not allowed to leave Gaza by any means. 75% of the families live under the poverty line. With a total Israeli blockade of the area, Gaza has become the largest concentration prison throughout the whole history of mankind.

The word “blockade” is no longer adequate to describe the situation in Gaza, for Israel is implementing a graduated genocide against Gazans. Israel was not satisfied with turning Gaza into the largest concentration camp ever, but had sent its terrorist army to routinely raid Gaza’s cities, destroying civilian homes, razing fertile farm land, murdering civilians, and kidnapping young men. Latest major raid was conducted on Tuesday June 3rd where seven Israeli tanks and one military bulldozer crossed the northern border of Gaza, attacked farmers and razed their farm land.

On Sunday June 1st ten Israeli tanks and five military bulldozers, covered with Apache helicopters, raided city of Khan Younes, razed large areas of farm lands destroying all crops, and withdrew after engaging Palestinian resistance fighters. On May 30th fifteen Israeli tanks and two military bulldozers invaded the Furta suburb of Beit Hanoun, razed its farm land destroying crops, rounded up men ages 16 to 60 years old in the center of town, and kidnapped at least 60 of them across the border. The Israeli terrorist army, air force, and gun boats shell Gaza’s cities daily. During the month of May alone the Israeli terrorist forces had murdered 45 Gazans mostly children under the age of eighteen. 

Gaza’s children, comprising almost 51% of population after Israeli forces had murdered and kidnapped large percentage of the adults, suffer the most. They suffer from malnutrition, anemia and other incurable diseases. Hospitals are at full capacity and are lacking all kinds of medicine. Without electricity hospitals could not operate incubators and other machinery resulting in the avoidable deaths of many new born babies and other patients. It is estimated that 1600 patients; mostly children under the age of 15, were admitted to hospitals during the last year alone. 178 patients had already died due to lack of medicine. 

Gaza Strip has been turned into a death camp, where death has become a daily incident.

Amnesty International has expressed great concern about the dire situation in Gaza, where families live on one dollar per day, and had condemned Israel’s collective punishment against people of Gaza. The EU’s External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner went on record speaking “against this collective punishment of the people of Gaza.” Javier Solana, the top EU foreign policy official, agreed in a letter statement to Electronic Intifada with the use of the term “collective punishment” describing Israel’s actions. 

Other international officials such as John Dugard, the UN special rapporteur on human rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, affirmed that Israel’s actions, including the murder and wounding of Palestinian civilians, and the siege of Gaza constitute serious violations of international laws.