Israeli minister pushes artificial 'Gaza island' plan
Plans for a seaport in Gaza have been discussed ever since the Oslo Accords of 1993 but have repeatedly stalled, either due to Israeli bombardments or restrictions on construction materials.
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It stands in stark contrast, however, to the poverty of the Gaza Strip.
"Today, Israel continues to be perceived as being responsible for the Gaza Strip and is to a large extent the only lifeline to it, even though it withdrew from the strip over a decade ago," says the video.
A boy sits in the rubble of his home following Israel's 2014 war. [Getty Images] |
Katz has presented the video to Israeli Prime Minsiter Binyamin Netanyahu's government, where it reportedly met with approval, but his plans have not been endorsed by Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman.
The hard-line minister has said Gaza does not deserve any development projects while Hamas still controls Gaza.
The construction of a seaport has long featured in Hamas' demands while negotiating past ceasefires with Israel during rounds of fighting, most notably in the 2014 war which killed more than 2,200 Palestinians.
Sami Abu Zuhri, the group's spokesman, has said in the past that a seaport is a "right of its people to alleviate their suffering and end the blockade".
Other Hamas officials have criticised the plan, however, saying it would further cement the geographical divide between the West Bank and Gaza while maintaining the blockade.
The new island plan could also add to long-stated intentions by Israel to annex the West Bank and clean their hands of Gaza.
In the past, Israel has hinted at constructing the project in return for a long-term truce and the demobilisation of fighters in Gaza, but Palestinian officials in Gaza have labelled the offers political blackmail.
Donors have failed to follow through on funding pledges to rebuild Gaza since Israel's devastating offensive in 2014, with the United Nations saying the enclave could be "uninhabitable" by 2020.
Most of Gaza's residents, the majority refugees from what is now Israel, live below the poverty line, with world record unemployment figures.