Israeli authorities opened the Kerem Shalom crossing into the Gaza Strip Thursday, allowing 700 truckloads of goods to enter the besieged enclave. Head of the Commission for the Coordination of Goods into Gaza Strip Raed Fattouh said that among the good entering the strip were construction materials for internationally-funded projects, fuel, and materials to improve the strip's infrastructure, particularly roads. Thursday's entrance of diesel, building materials, aid, and supplies through the Kerem Shalom crossing came after a series of closures due to Israeli national holidays. The crossing is scheduled to be closed again Friday and Saturday for the weekend. Severe border restrictions on imports and exports into Gaza by Israel and Egypt over the past eight years have led to a collapse of the tiny coastal enclave's economy, but small amounts of goods are allowed in through Kerem Shalom. more
Until now, the besieged Gaza Strip has stayed free of the novel coronavirus spreading across the world. As the Gaza Strip has been under a stringent Israeli-led blockade for nearly 13 years, the spread of the coronavirus - officially known as COVID-19 - has become the topic of discussion for many Palestinians, with some joking that the blockade was preventing them from being exposed.But as authorities in the coastal Palestinian enclave gear up to contain any potential outbreak, serious questions have arisen about the risks and implications of such a scenario. But given its already difficult humanitarian situation and high population density, an outbreak in the Gaza Strip could prove to be catastrophic, health officials have warned. "If the virus enters Gaza and spreads, it will get out of hand," Gaza Ministry of Health spokesperson Majdi Thuhair told Middle East Eye, as he explained that a severe shortage of resources and personnel would make it near impossible