Persuasive - Research Paper Example

These camps, housing more than three-quarters of these people, often lack basic amenities. At most camps raw sewage flows in open channels, contaminating everything. Even in the cities, unemployment and poverty are at extremely high levels, but organizations such as the Red Cross/Red Crescent can only deliver the most basic of humanitarian supplies to the Gaza Strip (BBC). And why can't the Red Cross help these people further? Because the Israeli military has built and guards a tall metal fence around the entire area, as well as maintaining a sea blockade.

Even the Egyptian side of the border is largely closed, in an attempt to placate the Israeli government. The only official import crossings are maintained by the Israeli army, and often even humanitarian aid and aid workers are not allowed passage (BBC). This state of affairs only exists due to war. In 1967, during the Israeli-Arab war, Israel took the Gaza Strip from Egyptian control, where it had been since the creation of Israel (BBC). It was not until 1994 that governmental control transferred from the Israelis to the Palestinians, and the Israeli military troops were not removed until 2005 (GazaSiege.org). At that time, according to the Israeli government, the occupation of the Gaza Strip by Israel had ended.

Rulings from their Supreme Court show that, officially, they feel they have no further responsibility to the people of Gaza (Shany). But once Hamas won the Palestinian elections, the Israeli military tightened an existing blockade around the area, which prevented transport of people and goods, strangled the economy, and led to a “humanitarian crisis” in 2008 (BBC) None of this even discusses the twenty-three day “war” in early during which over a thousand civilians were killed, Israel's response to a Palestinian election result (GazaSiege.org). This blockade needs to be broken, and Gaza truly removed from Israeli control for two main reasons: first, such a blockade violates international treaties about the treatment of occupied territories, and second, because of the obvious danger to the people living there.

Israel claims that they have a reason to blockade the Gaza strip, mostly to do with political disagreements with Palestine. Israel has tried to “isolate” and “control” the Palestinian political group Hamas through control of supplies and people entering the area as well as intensifying mortar and bombing attacks. They have severely limited access to such necessities as cooking fuel and electricity, and have upheld the legality of such actions. Since Gaza is no longer considered “occupied” by Israel and its population no longer a “protected people” under those terms, these restrictions do not constitute internationally prohibited “collective punishment” but instead fall under supposedly legitimate conventions about restrictions placed between nations which are at war (Shany).

However, many agencies and individuals around the world have rallied behind the besieged state, as proved by the attempt in during the first week of July this year to break the sea blockade simply to deliver letters of comfort and medical supplies to the people of Gaza (Torchia). Even Israel's own humanitarian aid agencies find these policies despicable (Shany). As they should! Without the ability to import or export goods, the economy of Gaza is