Camel farmer Zaid Hamad Ermelat returned to his land to find 20 animals – worth $2,800 a head – had been shot by Israeli troops.
Does
Israel really think it can break Palestinian resistance by destroying factories
and farmland and killing livestock?
GAZA'S
ECONOMY will take years to recover from the devastating impact of the war, in
which more than 360 factories have been destroyed or badly damaged and
thousands of acres of farmland ruined by tanks, shelling and air strikes,
according to analysts.
Israeli
air strikes on Gaza have resumed since a temporary ceasefire brokedown on
Tuesday after rockets were fired from Gaza. The Israeli Defence Force said it
launched air stikes on 20 sites on Friday morning and Gaza health officials
said two Palestinians were killed in an attack on a farm.
Almost
10% of Gaza's factories have been put out of action, said the Palestinian
Federation of Industries. Most other industrial plants have halted production
during the conflict, causing losses estimated at more than $70m (£42m), said
the union of Palestinian industries. The UN's food and agriculture organisation
(FAO) said about 42,000 acres of croplands had sustained substantial direct
damage and half of Gaza's poultry stock has been lost due to direct hits or
lack of care as access to farmlands along the border with Israel became
impossible.
More
than 9% of the annual fishing catch was lost between 9 July and 10 August, it
added.
"The
initial indications are that economic damage caused by the war is three times
that of the 2008-9 conflict," said Gaza-based economist Omar Shaban,
referring to the Israeli military operation, codenamed Cast Lead. "It's
huge."
Unemployment
would increase from the prewar rate of 40%, a result of factory destruction, he
said. "Recovery will depend on the terms of the ceasefire agreement –
whether the siege is lifted, and how quickly. But it will take a minimum of two
to three years even if it is lifted."
Gaza's
biggest factory, al Awda in Deir al-Balah, which made biscuits, juice and ice-cream,
was destroyed after days of air strikes and shelling last month, which caused a
massive fire. Its entire stock of raw ingredients was lost and valuable hi-tech
machinery damaged beyond repair. The factory employed 450 people.
"This
is a war on our economy," said owner Mohammed al-Telbani. "I started
at ground zero, spent 45 years building this business and now it's gone."
Manal
Hassan, the factory's manager, estimated the losses at $30m. "We kept a
very large stock because of the difficulties of getting raw materials and spare
parts into Gaza, so we had enough to keep production going for a year,"
she said. "This was a factory for making biscuits and ice-cream, not guns.
There were no rockets fired in this area."
At
the Nadi family farm in Beit Hanoun, Mahmoud Nadi said almost half the stock of
370 dairy cows had been killed in shelling from tanks positioned inside the
border and air strikes. The family, which has farmed in the area for 15 years,
fled to UN shelters in Jabaliya when the Israeli ground invasion started.
"When
we came back, there were dead cows everywhere. We could hardly reach them
because of the smell," he said. The milk yield from the remaining stock
had plummeted due to the animals' trauma, he added.
In
Beit Lahiya, camel farmer Zaid Hamad Ermelat returned to his land last week to
find 20 animals – worth $2,800 a head – had been shot by ground forces. Their
decomposing carcasses remained on the ground amid spent bullet casings from M16
rifles.
"This
is our only income, supporting 17 members of the family," said the
71-year-old Bedouin, who came to Gaza as a refugee during the 1948 war. Asked
what he would do to earn a living, he shrugged he would try to find work as a
farm labourer.
In
a nearby field, peppers were shrivelled on plants as farmers have been unable
to harvest crops during the war.
At
a cluster of farms in Juha Deek, nearly a mile from the border, almost every
house, store and animal pen was wrecked, fruit and olive trees snapped or
uprooted and cattle, sheep and goats killed by shrapnel, bullets or starvation
as families fled for safety.
"How
do I feel? Look at this," said Ahmed Abu Sayed, 22, gesturing at a view of
destroyed buildings and tank-churned land. "This tells you how I
feel."
The
FAO said it would distribute enough fodder to feed 55,000 sheep and goats for
45 days once a permanent ceasefire had been established.
Source:
Guardian
Gaza
rising from the ruins
Palestinian
artist Imad abu Shtayeh's powerful depiction of Gaza rising from the
destruction and carnage of Israel's assault.
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