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The Great Date (and Peach) War of Gaza

Hamas Cuts Imports of Israel Fruit To Boost Farmers

By Reuters

(Page 2 of 2)

Shanty said he and other importers had made advance payments to Israeli suppliers that would now be difficult to claim back.

Hikmat Abu Al-Qombuz, another importer, predicted spiralling fruit prices - which Gaza, most of whose 1.6 million Palestinians depend on aid, can ill afford.

Gaza dates and guava grower Ibrahim Al-Shaer, 52, said the move would help farmers by raising prices. But he admitted some imports from Israel remained vital.

“Israeli fruits compete with our produce in the market and they push down the prices. The government should allow imports at a reasonable level so the prices of our fruits do not go down sharply,” Shaer said as he stood in his field in Mawasi in southern Gaza.

Since the import ban went into effect on Friday, the price of peaches has doubled to eight Israeli shekels ($2) a kilo, while dates were selling at 11 shekels ($2.81) a kilo, up from 7 shekels.

Saqqa said the Hamas government would crack down on any Gazans deemed to be gouging fruit prices, and urged Palestinians to view the hardship through the prism of their struggle against Israel.

“We are people under blockade and we should have the culture of resistance,” he said. “Why should someone have all kinds of fruits on his table?”

Hamas won a Palestinian ballot in 2006, and had an uneasy alliance with the Western-backed rival Palestinian faction Fatah until they fought a brief civil war in Gaza a year later.

Under Hamas rule since, Gaza has suffered an often grinding embargo by Israel and Egypt, alleviated by goods smuggled in through tunnels from the Egyptian Sinai.

Israel, which fought a three-week war with Gaza in 2008-2009, eased overland travel restrictions in mid-2010. Hamas has urged Egypt to open up its border with Gaza since Islamists swept to power in Cairo this year but the call has not been met.