UNRWA chief urges end to Gaza blockade

Commissioner-General of the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) Filippo Grandi called Tuesday for ending the Israeli blockade on the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, describing it as one of the most famous sieges of modern history. "The blockade of Gaza has now lasted more than the most of the famous blockades of modern history; the blockade in Sarajevo, the blockade in Berlin and the blockade in Leningrad," Grandi told reporters in Gaza City as his tenure comes to an end this week. Grandi also said that the Israeli blockade of Gaza is illegal according to the international law, adding that his agency is exerting unwavering efforts to put an end to the blockade. Israel imposed an economic blockade on the Gaza Strip after Hamas, one of Israel's foes, seized control of the territory by force in 2007. Grandi said that the blockade has hindered the UNRWA's construction and aid projects as Israel bans the imports of building materials. "Those projects that are blocked are worth 150 million U.S. dollars," he said. He also appealed to Israel to allow Gaza's exports resume, saying lack of export is the main reason for the poverty of Gaza. The UN official also urged the Egyptian government to fulfill its obligation to allow people to cross Rafah terminal, Gaza's only door to the outside world, which has been blocked for seven weeks now. Relations between Hamas and the new military-backed government of Egypt worsened to unprecedented levels after the ouster of Islamist Egyptian president Mohammed Morsi, a Hamas patron, last July. Egypt's military, which has been battling Islamist fighters in the Sinai Peninsula near Gaza, regards Hamas, an offshoot of the Muslim brotherhood, a threat to national security. Grandi pledged to continue providing its services to the Palestinian refuges despite all the difficulties, affirming there is no reduction of its services as some Palestinians in Gaza claim. UNRWA provides food, education, work and health services for millions of Palestinian refugees in Gaza, West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. Source: XINHUA