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Comment by buyucu | Hacker News Reader

And this didn't start in 2023. Gaza has been under Israeli blockade for decades.

> And this didn't start in 2023. Gaza has been under Israeli blockade for decades.

The blockade was also imposed by Egypt[0] and Hamas certainly provided no shortage of security related justifications for the blockade. Unfortunately those security concerns turned out to be accurate[1].

[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blockade_of_the_Gaza_Strip

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/October_7_attacks

Unfortunately Netanyahu actively encouraged Qatar to send cash to Hamas.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli_support_for_Hamas

> In February 2020, former Mossad Director Yossi Cohen and Israeli general Herzi Halevi, under Netanyahu's orders, went to Qatar to plead Qatari officials to continue the payments for Hamas.[8] Later, in September 2023, David Barnea, the Director of Mossad since 2021, went to Qatar to meet Qatari officials to discuss about the payments for Hamas.[10][44]

(...)

> Israeli intelligence officials believe that the money had a role in the success of 2023 Hamas-led attack.[10]

> Unfortunately Netanyahu actively encouraged Qatar to send cash to Hamas.

Yeah, Benjamin Netanyahu certainly got complacent thinking he could keep a genocidal terrorist group like Hamas under control with that strategy. Qatar and their support for terrorists has long been a problem as well.

It wasn't just him, all the governments for the last decade tried to keep the peace while enforcing the blockage but allowing cash for salaries, humanitarian aid etc which made Gaza flourish with hotels, restaurants, beach resorts and high end shopping (see the videos). All no longer :(

A few months prior to October 7th, Natenyahu had allowed the highest number of work visas for Gazans to work in Israel proper. They genuinely thought economic prosperity would bring an slowdown and eventual end to terrorism. Now try and find Israelis who support the idea of 10s of 1000s Palestinians cruising the borders for work each day - thanks to Oct 7th.

Doesn't quite fit the narrative you want to portray, does it?

> Gaza flourish with hotels, restaurants, beach resorts and high end shopping (see the videos)

What videos?

Not OP, but there were many videos posted, (especially early on in this conflict,) depicting very nice neighborhoods and commercial districts in Gaza (some of which were in the process of being destroyed or abandoned).

I guess “generalized ban on travel” a.k.a. “open air prison” fits better.

The October 7 attacks only succeeded because Netanyahu opened the military border to let them in.

> The October 7 attacks only succeeded because Netanyahu opened the military border to let them in.

Do you also believe 9/11 was an inside job? Both claims are IMO equally unrealistic.

> Unfortunately those security concerns turned out to be accurate

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-fulfilling_prophecy

It’s not been under a “blockade” for even a year continuously. Literally earlier this year, hundreds of trucks carrying aid were allowed in per day. That was during the ceasefire that didn’t last. If you go back to the history of blockades of Gaza you’ll see it was very intermittent. And when things were tightened, it was in response to incidents like Hamas rocket attacks.

The requirement is about five hundred trucks per day of food (so each truck feeding about four thousand people). The fact that on rare occasions they'd let in about half that isn't really a point in your favor.

un own statistics site https://www.ochaopt.org/data/crossings

food tracks fluctuate between 2000 and 3000 a month prior to oct 7th. a few more dozens of of tracks with "non-edible consumables" and "medical supplies". rest of tracks are construction materials

Gaza at the time had farms as well as a small fishing industry, and thus needed fewer imports to feed the population.

iirc, gaza farms and fishing provided less than 10% of calories to population. animal farms were dependent upon imported animal feed.

ps. good chunk of farms were actually not for gaza consumption but for export (to israel and other places). stuff like strawberries, some leafy greens, etc. but in general farming in region is hard. there is no water. droughts been severe. Israel survives by desalinating majority (80%) of potable water (and supplying it to jordan, west bank, gaza) and recycling 90% of waste water for use in agriculture.

Untrue. Your quoting total imports (eg concrete that was largely misappropriated to build Hamas tunnels). The amount of food delivery on average is comparable to before the war.

I am not.

Before the war Gaza had the ability to produce much of its own food. To subsist totally on imports, about 500 trucks a day is what's needed.

The level of blockade now is on a whole other level.

Not to mention that the blockade was enforced by Egypt as well.

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