Palestine: From bad to wretched

The numbers are grim, whether in the West Bank or the Gaza Strip. The Palestinian economy is in one of its most wretched states, and the disaster is mostly, if not entirely, man-made, thus reversible.The World Bank made no secret of the fact that Israeli restrictions are largely to blame, as poverty rates in the Gaza Strip have soared to 79.4% and in the West Bank to 45.7%. It concluded that "with a growing population and a shrinking economy, real per capita GDP is now 30% below its height in 1999 ... With due regard to Israel's security concerns, there is consensus on the paralytic effect of the current physical obstacles placed on the Palestinian economy."With a declining economy, lack of developmental projects and Israeli restrictions, Palestinians are increasingly reliant on foreign aid, which is largely controlled by political interests. For example, the US proved more generous than ever in supporting the Ramallah-based government of Mahmoud Abbas as it led an international regime of sanctions and embargo against the Gaza-based Hamas government. Such funds are often conditioned on such murky concepts as "cracking down on the terrorist infrastructure", which is duly understood as fighting those who challenge Israel and Palestinian Authority rule in the West Bank.

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