BETHLEHEM,
West Bank, July 28 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - Hundreds of
Palestinians rallied Sunday, July 28, 2002, in the West Bank cities of
Nablus, Bethlehem, and Jenin, against the crippling curfew imposed by
the Israeli occupation forces for more than six weeks.
In
Bethlehem, around 300 young Palestinians gathered to protest against
the Israeli army occupation and food shortages.
The
Palestinians gathered in front of the Nativity Church in Bethlehem's
central square, while a curfew was briefly lifted on the West Bank
town, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).
The
demonstrators shouted slogans against the occupation and the curfew,
and notably demanded "bread and milk", complaining they were
short of basic supplies.
In
Nablus, around 100 Palestinian children toured the city’s empty
streets, banging on empty plates and milk cans, challenging the
imposed curfew. The hungry children carried banners in different
languages, reading, “Sharon is a killer”, “We get killed, world
children have fun”, “We want to go to schools and nurseries”,
“Save us from occupation”.
Palestinians
and international volunteers also gathered in Nablus near an Israeli
army checkpoint to protest against the occupation, witnesses said.
International
agencies and experts sound the alarm over a growing humanitarian
crisis in the reoccupied Palestinian areas, including reports that
malnutrition among children is widespread and increasing rapidly.
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The curfew imposed by Israel is causing a human catastrophe for Palestinians |
A
report by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID),
distributed in diplomatic circles, said more than 30 percent of the
3.5 million Palestinians living in the West Bank and Gaza Strip depend
on food handouts, while half of them need outside help to meet minimal
food needs.
Thirty
percent of Palestinian children under five who were screened suffered
from chronic malnutrition and 21 percent from acute malnutrition, up
from 7.5 and 2.5 percent respectively in 2000, the report said.
It
said that 45 percent of the young children and 48 percent of women of
childbearing age suffered from moderate to mild anemia, and the poor
state of sanitation posed a risk of infectious diseases.
"Due
to diminished access to potable water, residence overcrowding and
inadequate shelter, possible outbreak of diseases such as cholera is a
growing concern," according to the report.
Their
factories bankrupt, marriages put off, money running short,
Palestinians in the West Bank have their lives thrown into suspended
animation by Israel's re-occupation of the territory.
Bethlehem,
the traditional birthplace of Jesus Christ just south of Jerusalem,
spent 20 out of the last 34 days under Israeli curfew, and like the
other West Bank cities living under the lockdown, the strain is taking
its toll.
"How
can we manage when the curfew is only lifted for an average two and a
half hours a day," asked Munir Salameh, deputy governor of
Bethlehem, AFP reported.
He
said people were working at only "20 percent of their normal
capacity." Civil servants are paid late because the banks are
closed, while private sector workers are only paid on daily basis, he
said. Many others are simply without work.
Leon
Ohannessian, who had to shut down his paper factory that employed 80
people, said his work was not the only plant to go down, with a local
potato chip factory and a chocolate works also going out of business.
"The
workers cannot come, raw materials cannot get in and the finished
products cannot get out. The occupation is a disaster for businesses,
from shops to factories," he said.
When
the curfew is lifted, the town bursts into frantic activity for a few
hours, as people rush out to pay visits, hold meetings, see doctors
and go to funerals, cramming in their daily lives to a brief period of
relative freedom.
"The
situation is catastrophic," chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb
Erakat said this week in assessing the impact of the Israeli
occupation of Palestinian lands and other actions in the 22-month-old
Intifada against the Israeli occupation.
