UN: Israel cooperating in efforts to improve Gaza humanitarian situation

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A United Nations official said on Friday Israel was cooperating in efforts to improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza but that far more had to be done to help the Palestinian territory recover after Israel's offensive.

John Holmes, the UN's Humanitarian Affairs chief, said Israel was allowing in more food and medicine into Gaza than it did before December 27, when it launched the offensive against Hamas with the stated goal of stopping cross-border rocket attacks.

"I've detected a spirit of good will on the Israeli side to help do that," Holmes told said, referring to efforts by aid organizations to transfer medical, food and other urgent supplies to Gaza through border crossings controlled by Israel. He said construction materials were urgently needed to rebuild thousands of homes and government buildings destroyed in fighting but the challenge remained to reassure Israel that the equipment would not be used by Hamas to manufacture arms.

"We have to be able to get in cement, we have to be able to get in pipes, spare parts, few bits of equipment of all kinds. And that's been very difficult in the past because of Israeli security concerns about rearming Hamas," Holmes said.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1058216.html

[ProgressiveProfessor]

1. That is going to be a serious concern

There was a lot of concrete and associcated building materials going into Gaza that was used for tunnels etc. Under the circumstances, Israel's concern has some basis in fact

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2. Maybe the IDF should not have blown all that stuff up.

It's going to take a hell of a lot of concrete etc. to repair the damage, and the repairs are not going to wait until the I/P issue is resolved. I understand their concerns well enough, but that doesn't mean you can do whatever you like about it and expect no consequences.

[ProgressiveProfessor]

3. There was some postings of articles yesterday where Israel wanted approval for projects

or equivalent means to verify that what was going in was being used where they said it would. Something along those lines will most likely end up being what happens.

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4. Yes. No such system can be hermetic, but I expect they will do what can be done.

President Obama has already said as much.

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5. Anti-smuggling mechanism approved

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Defense Minister Ehud Barak and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni met overnight Thursday and approved the implementation of a new mechanism set up with Egypt to prevent Gaza arms smuggling.

The new mechanism consists of three layers - intelligence cooperation, obstacles in Sinai and the deployment of new tunnel-detection technology along the border.

Thursday night's meeting came after Amos Gilad, the head of the Defense Ministry's diplomatic-military bureau, returned from Cairo where he met Egyptian government officials, including intelligence chief Omar Suleiman, for talks about Gilad Schalit and the new anti-smuggling mechanism.

Defense officials said Thursday that Gilad would likely travel to Egypt every other week to oversee the mechanism's effectiveness.

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1232643730281&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

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6. Israel opens crossings to Gaza for aid workers

JERUSALEM: Israel opened its passenger crossing into Gaza on Friday, allowing free access for international reporters and humanitarian workers, a day after Hamas said it would begin handing out compensation and reconstruction aid to Gaza residents, in a sign of the challenges Israel faces as it tries to weaken the militant group's hold after the Israeli Army's operation there.

Michael Bailey of Oxfam International, one of the aid groups allowed through the Erez crossing Friday for the first time since before its three-week military operation began, called the Israeli move "long overdue," The Associated Press reported.

Taher al-Nunu, a spokesman for the Hamas government in Gaza, said at a news conference Thursday that it would start to distribute the first installment of $35 million to $40 million in payments to Gazans on Sunday. Israel ended its three-week offensive against Hamas last Sunday, and withdrew its last troops from the area early Wednesday.

An adviser to Prime Minister Ehud Olmert of Israel said Thursday that the "last thing" Israel wanted was for Hamas to get stronger after the military operation, which Israel has said was intended to reduce the threat of Hamas rocket fire against southern Israel.

http://www.iht.com/articles/2009/01/23/mideast/mideast.4-414730.php