World Food Programme Fighting Hunger Worldwide

The Government of Israel (GoI) announced on 20 June 2010 its decision to “ease” the blockade on the Gaza Strip by expanding commercial crossings and improving access to humanitarian and commercial goods except any “dual-use items” that could be used for potential military activity against the State of Israel. On 8 December 2010, the GoI announced that it would allow the export of agricultural products, furniture and textile products through the crossings to assist the Gaza economy . Since the announcement, a list of controlled dual-use items was published ; however, a list of items not permitted into Gaza has not been released. While construction materi-als have been allowed entry for some projects, the coordination procedures are heavy and cause delays in implementation, which also increases costs for humanitarian agencies. The planned expansion of commercial crossings did not take effect; rather Karni was closed in March 2011 and only one crossing is open for import and export of goods. In effect, the easing of the blockade has had only marginal positive impact in Gaza.