How Israel’s restrictions on access hinder Gaza’s fishing sector
April 2, 2020. With the outbreak of COVID-19, lifting restrictions on fishermen’s access to the items they need to make a living and support their families is more crucial than ever. Read More »

Gisha in urgent letter to MoD and COGAT: Israeli restrictions must be removed immediately to ensure food security and prevent economic collapse in the Gaza Strip
April 1, 2020. Today Gisha sent an urgent letter to Israel’s Defense Minister Naftali Bennett and the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories Kamil Abu Rukun, demanding they take immediate action to protect food security and promote economic activity in the Strip as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread. Read More »

Crossing update: Movement of people to and from Gaza at a virtual standstill. Transit of goods continues as usual. Restrictions on goods must be removed to protect Gaza’s economy
March 31, 2020. Travel through Erez Crossing is restricted mostly to medical patients and their companions. Rafah Crossing is open for return to Gaza by Gaza residents only. Kerem Shalom Crossing and Salah a-Din Gate are operating normally. Gaza now has 10 diagnosed cases of COVID-19. Thousands are in isolation. Read More »

Israel is responsible for protecting the health of Gaza residents
March 22, 2020. Following years of deliberate and sweeping restrictions on movement of people and goods, the Strip is not equipped to handle the COVID-19 pandemic. Gisha calls on Israel to remove the closure and enable all necessary equipment to enter the Strip Read More »

Crossing update: Travel through Erez and Rafah still severely limited due to Coronavirus measures; Kerem Shalom Crossing operating as usual
March 18, 2020. Israel has limited movement through Erez since March 8, initially as part of measures implemented during the Jewish holiday of Purim. So far, cases of COVID-19 have been recorded in Israel and the West Bank, but not in Gaza. Read More »

Crossings update: Travel through Erez and Rafah Crossing severely limited; Kerem Shalom Crossing working as usual
March 16, 2020. Due to concerns over the spread of the COVID-19 virus, exit through Erez Crossing is currently limited mostly to medical patients and their companions. Read More »

Crossings update: Israel to impose extensive travel restrictions at Erez Crossing over Coronavirus concerns
March 11, 2020. From Thursday, exit from Gaza will be limited to patients seeking urgent medical treatment and their companions, Palestinians with Israeli citizenship, Palestinian West Bank residents, “exceptional humanitarian cases,” and foreign nationals. Read More »

Increase in Gaza’s unemployment rate in 2019
March 5, 2020. In 2019, Gaza’s unemployment rate averaged 45.1% compared to 43.1% in 2018. The gap between the unemployment rate in Gaza and the West Bank remains staggering; Gaza’s rate is more than triple that of the West Bank. Read More »

Gaza’s crossings return to normal operations; access to “fishing zone” restored
February 24-27, 2020. After three days in which Israel closed Erez Crossing to exit from Gaza and two days of limiting transfer of goods via Kerem Shalom, the crossings have returned to normal operations. Read more >> Read More »

Easing, punishment, easings, repeat.
February 23, 2020. On Tuesday, February 18, the Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) announced an increase in permits for Gaza traders to 7,000 permits. It’s never quite that simple. Read More »

Collective punishment continues
February 18, 2020. Israel continues to collectively punish Gaza residents. On Saturday, COGAT again announced that “civilian measures” that it had planned to implement were cancelled as punishment for rocket fire launched from the Strip. Read More »

Israel reduces Gaza’s “fishing zone” again in act of collective punishment
February 6, 2020. Yesterday COGAT announced that as of 16:00 that day, fishermen’s access to Gaza’s sea space would be limited to a distance of up to ten nautical miles. Read More »

Israel announces a freeze to all “easings”
February 3, 2020. The decision to freeze the implementation of the various measures, accompanied by the portrayal of these measures as “easings” or “gestures,” is a familiar pattern of collective punishment. Read More »

Gisha’s statement on the Middle East Peace Plan
January 29, 2020. The “peace plan” presented yesterday in Washington D.C. aims to make permanent a reality of fragmentation, isolation and division in the occupied Palestinian territory. Further entrenching the dispossession of Palestinians and perpetuating the occupation is a recipe for ongoing conflict, not peace. Read More »