Published: 10 September 2016
Last updated: 4 March 2024
Surveying a number of studies, the report reveals the channels through which occupation deprives the Palestinian people of their human right to development and hollows out the Palestinian economy. Chief among these are the confiscation of Palestinian land, water and other natural resources; loss of policy space; restrictions on the movement of people and goods; destruction of assets and the productive base; expansion of Israeli settlements; fragmentation of domestic markets; separation from international markets and forced dependence on the Israeli economy.
For full report see: Report on UNCTAD assistance to the Palestinian people: Developments in the economy of the Occupied Palestinian Territory – United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) 01.09.16
In 2015, Israel withheld Palestinian fiscal revenue for four months, donor aid declined and Israeli settlements continued to expand into the OPT, while poverty and unemployment remained high. Gaza’s socioeconomic conditions worsened and the infant mortality rate increased for the first time in 50 years. Occupation imposes a heavy cost on the economy of the OPT, which might otherwise reach twice its current size. Yet, to date, attempts to estimate the economic cost of occupation remain partial and ad hoc.
And see:
Does Netanyahu really care about Palestinians August 23, 2016
He tries to justify the occupation by using the excuse that all colonialists and occupiers have used throughout history: It’s for their own good.
Fragmented lives June 18, 2016
Annual report by UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) highlights occupation, Gaza blockade, and settler violence as primary causes of Palestinian suffering. Presents other parties, including Hamas, Fatah-led Palestinian Authority and Egypt’s role in blockade of Gaza, as second-tier causes.
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