The General Federation of Palestinian Industries in the Gaza Strip and the Union of the Gaza Strip Chambers of Commerce today strongly condemned the Israeli occupation authorities’ decision to close the Karm Abu SalemKerem Shalom crossing for exports from the Gaza Strip to the West Bank, considering it collective punishment that exacerbates the suffering of the people of the besieged Strip. Waddah Bseiso, spokesman for the Federation of Industries, said during a press conference held shortly after the Israeli occupation decision to close the crossing for Gaza exports that the Federation deplores the Israeli decision, stressing that it will have negative repercussions and greatly affects the Gaza economy, especially the industrial sector, and threatens to close and stop work in hundreds of industrial facilities that heavily depend on export and lead to laying off thousands of workers. He called on Israel to retract this decision, stressing that the General Federation of Palestinian Industries and the industrial sector, in general, are committed to export standards and procedures, explaining that any actions that lead to the closing of the crossing are rejected and denounced by the Federation. Israel claimed it found explosives hidden among packages of clothes that were being exported from Gaza to the West Bank, which prompted it to close the only commercial crossing for Gaza with the outside world as a punishment. Ayed Abu Ramadan, the head of the Union of Chamber of Commerce in the Gaza Strip and Secretary of the Coordination Council for Private Sector Institutions, condemned the Israeli decision, stressing that the closure is a new escalation in the 18-year-long Israeli blockade on the Gaza Strip that will further exacerbate the suffering of the people of the Gaza Strip. He said that this decision is an unjustified escalation that will leave adverse effects on the Strip’s economy and the livelihood of its people, will aggravate the already difficult economic situation in the Gaza Strip and negatively affect the industrial, agricultural and labor sectors, and threatens to stop many industrial and agricultural facilities from working, which will result in the loss of jobs for many workers, and increase the already high rates of unemployment and poverty in the Strip. He said that closing the crossing is an unjust measure and collective punishment for the more than two million people in the Gaza Strip, who are already suffering from exceptionally difficult conditions, and will cause a real humanitarian catastrophe in the Gaza Strip, calling for the urgent and immediate reopening of Karm Abu SalemKerem Shalom crossing and lifting the sanctions that exacerbate the suffering of the population and undermine opportunities for economic growth, peace and stability in the region.

Source: Palestine News & Information Agency