WEST BANK: Economic situation in Nablus worsens as Israel's grip on the city seals it off from the rest of the West Bank

Record ID: 562500

  • Title: WEST BANK: Economic situation in Nablus worsens as Israel's grip on the city seals it off from the rest of the West Bank
  • Date: 14th August 2007
  • Summary: (MER1) HUWWARA CHECKPOINT, WEST BANK (RECENT) (REUTERS) WIDE OF CHECKPOINT ISRAELI SOLDIERS CHECKING CAR MORE OF CHECKPOINT
  • Embargoed: 29th August 2007 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Topics: International Relations,Economic News
  • Reuters ID: LVAD73MI0HVFDUGKJEJZJUSAT8PC
  • Story Text: The economy of the West Bank city of Nablus increasingly suffers under Israel's tight grip, which cordons off the city from other parts of the West Bank. Many businessmen are now resorting to relocating their shops and businesses out of the city in order to sidestep the strict Israeli-imposed restrictions on entry into Nablus.
    Mahdi Hijazi, a well known Palestinian businessman, waited patiently for over five years hoping that Israel would lift the tight travel restrictions it imposed on the West Bank city of Nablus that crippled his car repair business.
    But the 57-year-old Mercedes-Benz spare parts agent saw no sign of Israel relaxing the restrictions at the military checkpoints it set up around Nablus, which is one of the most densely populated cities in the West Bank. So Hijazi decided to close down his Nablus garage and relocate to the village of Huwwara outside Nablus in order to bypass the checkpoints so that his business might prosper once again.
    "We were patient, we were patient for more than five or six years.
    I haven't been gone long, I left only nine months or a year ago. It was when the situation got very bad and it got to the point where we couldn't talk and there was no work at all," he says.
    After moving to Huwwara, Hijazi began contacting his clients, many of whom were now spread out in other towns and villages across the West Bank, informing them of the new location of his the garage.
    Before erecting the checkpoints around Nablus in 2002, the city was known as the business hub of the West Bank and dubbed the economic capital of Palestine. It was a centre for trading olives, soap, furniture and many other goods. But now the city's commercial centre is run down and many of its markets are empty.
    The fortified Israeli checkpoints that funnel people and cars do not allow motorists to get in or out of the city unless they have a special Israeli permit, which only a limited number of people can acquire.
    "The problem is the checkpoints that have been set up around Nablus. Whether you are a buyer or a seller, anyone who wants to enter Nablus needs permission or a specific permit from the District Coordination Office (between Israel and the Palestinian Authority). So this is what is stopping people from entering and has made business in Nablus and at the market very slow. It has also affected the amount of goods that come in," said Imad al-Hafi, a vendor at the Beita village fruit and vegetable market, as he explained why he decided to abandon his stall at Nablus' main market.
    Compared to other West Bank cities, Nablus seems to have the most severe restrictions imposed on it by Israel and many residents dismiss the Israeli claim that the roadblocks and checkpoints are meant to thwart bombers from targetting Israel.
    The Chamber of Commerce in Nablus does not have exact figures on the number of businesses that have closed down as a result of the Israeli restrictions but it estimates that at least 40 percent of the city's income has been lost due to Israeli restrictions and raids in the city.
    "Industry has been cut back 50 percent, tourism has been reduced by 100 percent so no tourist visits to Nablus. All of this is because Nablus has been made into a cage," the Deputy Director Of Chamber Of Commerce In Nablus, Omar Hashim, said.
    Because of the checkpoints, many of Nablus' entrepreneurs have left and relocated their businesses elsewhere.
    Community leaders said the Israeli restrictions are having a counterproductive effect, playing into the hands of militant groups and fostering hardened attitudes toward Israel.
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