Since the occupation began in 1967, Israel has undertaken extensive settlement building in the Occupied Palestinian Territories; there are currently 230 illegal settlements housing 500,000 Israeli settlers across the West Bank and Jerusalem. Israel has also built a network of settler-only highways across the West Bank and set up hundreds of checkpoints and barriers, severely restricting the movement of Palestinians. Whilst the settlements themselves only use 3% of the land, the intricate series of bypass roads connecting the settlements to Israel which restrict Palestinians further from their own land, results in the settlements monopolizing around 40% of the West Bank. A state of fragile peace governs the region, with political insecurity undermining the daily lives of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. Trade is disrupted by checkpoints, the separation wall, and general restrictions on the movement of people and goods. As such there are high levels of poverty and food insecurity with over 46% of Palestinians in the West Bank living below the poverty line; in Gaza the figure is as high as 80%. There are high and persistent unemployment rates; again, Gaza comes off worse, with 45% of the population unemployed. An estimated 50% of all Palestinian refugees in Lebanon live below the poverty line with around 53% living in refugee camps. Palestinians are essentially stateless; they are denied equal rights and are prohibited from undertaking over 70 professions. Throughout the West Bank, Gaza, Lebanon and Jordan children grow up with dirty water, lack of education or run-down schools, faltering electricity and inadequate medical care. Youths mature to find themselves in an economy with sky-high unemployment rates while parents grow old and face mounting health problems, with limited medical supplies and capacity stunting life expectancy. ||||| interpal.org/content.aspx?pageID=3 ||||
Posted on: Sat, 09 Aug 2014 02:55:20 +0000
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