The notion of Palestinian economic development while under Israeli occupation has again been promoted, notably by US Secretary of State John Kerry, as the means to advance the cause of peace through negotiations. Those following such matters in Palestine fear that media hype will blind people to the impossibility of achieving sustainable economic development while Israel continues to occupy, settle and Judaise Palestinian territory. Talk of economic development under such circumstances ignores the fact that Israel controls the most important keys to the Palestinian economy. Studies indicate that Israel dominates about 96 per cent of all Palestinian imports and exports, and now the deficit in the Palestinian balance of payments is the foundation of a very forced relationship between the Palestinian and Israeli economies. As a result of the decline in the Palestinian economy, which is due to Israeli efforts aimed at marginalising its various sectors, thousands of individuals from the Palestinian labour force have been driven to find work inside Israel, benefiting the Israeli economy, not their own.
Posted on: Wed, 26 Jun 2013 00:32:11 +0000
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