‘Israel’ to open Gaza crossing for first time since COVID outbreak

Gaza Strip (QNN)- Israeli occupation government will reopen a key border crossing in the Gaza Strip on Sunday for the first time since COVID-19 took hold in March last year, allowing entry to hundreds of traders.

The move will permit entry through the Erez crossing “for 1,000 merchants and 350 senior Gazan businesspeople,” according to a statement from Israel’s War Ministry.

Only those already vaccinated against, or recovered from COVID-19, will be allowed to cross, the statement said.

Trade will also be expanded through the Kerem Shalom crossing in the south of Gaza, including equipment and goods for humanitarian infrastructure, such as water and sewage.

An 11-day of Israeli aggression last May on the Gaza Strip killed at least 243 people in Gaza, including 67 children.

A report by the United Nations, the European Union and the World Bank estimated that the damage caused in the 11-day Israeli bombardment of Gaza Strip was between $290m and $380m, while the recovery needs are projected at between $345m and $485m.

The Gaza Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment (RDNA) report also found that following the aggression, 62 percent of the population of Gaza is food insecure, adding that unemployment was already at 48 percent and poverty rates above 50 percent before the escalation.

The RDNA report found that most of the damage in Gaza from Israel’s bombardment in May was caused to social sectors such as housing, health, education, and social protection and jobs, at an estimate of $180m.

“The housing sector alone represents almost 93 percent of the total damages to the social sectors,” the report said.