The UN World Food Program (WFP) said it handed out emergency aid Saturday, March 3, to 1,000 more families in the Gaza Strip, in an effort to alleviate the effects of a crippling five-month Israeli closure of the Palestinian territories.
At the Rafah crossing between Israel and the Gaza Strip, WFP representatives handed out 50-kilogram (110-pound) sacks of wheat flour to Palestinians from the area who have been the hardest hit by the collapse of the Palestinian economy.
Since beginning relief operations in the West Bank and Gaza Strip a week ago, the WFP has given aid to 11,200 Palestinian families, said spokeswoman Heather Hill. The agency plans to reach 250,000 Palestinians over a three-month aid operation, which is roughly the same size as the earthquake relief program in El Salvador earlier this year.
"I've heard so many stories from women who have come to get food aid who say they have lost all source of income in their household," Hill said.
Since an anti-Israeli uprising began in late September, the army has sealed off the territories, blocking more than 100,000 Palestinians from reaching jobs they hold in Israel. Some 32 percent of Palestinians live on less than two dollars a day — a 50 percent increase from September — according to the World Bank.
The WFP appealed late last year for four million dollars to help the Palestinians, and so far has received about half that, Hill said. She said the agency was appealing urgently for more funds so it can provide Palestinians with more necessities, in particular cooking oil.
"With the plunge in purchasing power, this is something they cannot buy. Cooking oil is one of the most expensive commodities," she said. Because of limited resources, she said the WFP was focusing its efforts on "extreme hardship cases," while other Palestinians may also need assistance.
More than 100 Palestinians wounded in the five months of fighting with the Israeli army received financial aid Saturday, February 3, from Iraq in a public ceremony in Hebron. In a room featuring portraits of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, officials from the Arab Liberation Front, a pro-Baghdad Palestinian group, and representatives of Iraq's ruling Baath party handed injured Palestinians or members of their families checks for $500 or $1,000.
Speaking on behalf of the Palestinian Authority, parliamentarian Abbas Zaki thanked Saddam for the aid and promised that the uprising against Israel would continue. Thousands of Palestinians burned US flags at rallies last month in support of Saddam after US and British warplanes bombed the Baghdad region. In the 1991 Gulf War, Iraq fired 39 Scud missiles on Israel, killing two Israelis and winning the hearts of hard-line Palestinians, angered by Washington's alliance with Israel.
Iraq has pledged one billion euros ($930 million) to support the Palestinian uprising, which broke out after right-wing leader Ariel Sharon made a high-profile visit to the Jerusalem mosque compound, a site holy to both Muslims and Jews. Following Sharon's election as prime minister, Iraq announced the formation of a "Jerusalem Liberation Army." — (AFP, Jerusalem, Hebron)
© Agence France Presse 2001
© 2001 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
