Gaza: One Year Later

As many will have read and heard in the last days the Freedom-like March, Gaza Freedom March, has been barred by the Egyptians from entering Gaza from Egypt.

Meanwhile, things in Gaz are dire, to say the least. Adam Horowitz, writing on that so venerable and must-read site Mondoweiss reports on Gaza one year on from Israel's fierce onslaught on Gaza:

"From Mohammad’s summary of "Failing Gaza":

• Since the assault ended, leaving 15,000 buildings damages and 5,000 completely destroyed, only 41 trucks of construction materials have been allowed to enter Gaza

• Prior to 2007, and average of 70 truckloads of exports left Gaza everyday. For the past two years, that number has been zero.

• Only 35 categories of items are allowed into Gaza. That is, only 35 types of products are allowed in to the 1.5 million prisoners.

• The number of trucks carrying construction materials entering Gaza today is 0.05% of what it was before the blockade. That’s not half a percent-it’s one twentieth of one percent

• 84% of the damage inflicted during the assault was on housing, agriculture and the private sector, putting to bed any illusions that this war did not target the civilian population.

• The damage has left 600,000 tons of rubble strewn across Gaza

• 15,000 homes sustained enough damage displace 100,000 people

• 2,870 homes need major repair and 3,540 need complete rebuilding; in effect, Israel destroyed 291 homes per day during the war

• 52,900 homes sustained minor damages

• 20,000 people remain displaced-some of whom are living in tents in the shadow of the remains of their destroyed homes

• During the war Israel destroyed 700 private businesses

• Prior to the war, the siege had led to 98% of Gaza’s industrial operations becoming idle

• Joblessness in Gaza has now reached 40%

• 120,000 private sector jobs have been lost since the blockade was imposed

• Six months before the war, 70% of Gazan families were surviving on less than one dollar a day

• 17% of Gaza’s farmland was destroyed by Israeli tanks and military vehicles during the war. Four months later Israel announced that it would expand its buffer zone into Gaza even further. Together with the damaged land, the buffer zone has put 46% of Gaza’s agricultural land out of production

• Over 30 kilometers of water networks were damaged or destroyed during the war; 9 kilometers remain damaged

• During the war Israel damaged or destroyed 15 hospitals and 41 primary health clinics

• Israel destroyed 18 schools during the war, and damaged 280 more

• 230 schoolchildren were killed by Israel during the war"

And as if that wasn't bad enough, read on, here, for more devastating stats on what Israel wrought.