Israel reopens main Gaza crossing point for goods

By Staff
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Google Oneindia News

GAZA, March 9 (Reuters) Trucks carrying food rolled into Gaza today after Israel reopened the strip's main commercial crossing following a closure of more than two weeks because of what it said were security threats.

The United Nations cautioned last week that stocks of wheat, sugar and cooking oil were dwindling in Gaza and could begin to run out within days unless Israel reopened the Karni crossing.

''The decision to open the crossing was made despite existing security alerts and after both humanitarian and security aspects were all taken into consideration,'' the Israeli army said in a statement.

Salim Abu Safiyah, director of security at Palestinian crossings with Israel, said Karni was reopened partially for food and medicine. Trucks were not allowed to leave Gaza for Israel yet, but might be able to from Sunday, he said.

''It is a step in the right direction but it is not enough.

We need the crossing to open as normal and to be in full operation,'' he told Reuters.

Israel closed Karni for 21 days between January 15 and February 5.

It was closed again on February 21 after a mysterious explosion in the area and had remained shut because of ''continued security alerts'', the army had said.

Israeli officials had defended the closure as a security precaution against possible Palestinian attacks and said they offered to reroute supplies to Gaza through another crossing, a proposal the Palestinians had declined.

The Palestinians say such closures are collective punishment.

More than 500 tonnes of produce grown in Gaza greenhouses had to be destroyed in the last week because of the Karni closure, a U.S.

government report has said.

Israel ended its 38-year military rule of the Gaza Strip last year, but retains control of all access points for bringing goods in and out of the territory.

REUTERS SHR PC1538

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