The Continuing Lie of the ‘Gaza Blockade’

In 2022, United Nations officials and reports, the Palestinian Authority, and many countries and their representatives, continued to perpetuate the lie alleging that Israel has applied a “blockade” on the “besieged Gaza Strip.”

While the lie is commonplace and even often embellished by claims that “Gaza is the biggest prison in the world,” statistics released by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in the so-called “occupied Palestinian territory” (OCHA) reveal the truth.

According to the OCHA statistics, in 2022, there were 424,417 exits via the Erez crossing from Gaza into Israel; 14,909 exits were for Gazan patients, who were accompanied by 10,930 people, entering Israel to receive medical treatment. There were also 573 entries into Israel to visit imprisoned terrorists.

 [Website of United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, accessed Jan. 18, 2023]

Alongside the entry of the Gazans into Israel, OCHA also reported that 74,096 truckloads of commodities entered Gaza from Israel via the Kerem Shalom crossing in 2022. According to the statistics, only 5% of the truckloads were carrying humanitarian products.

[Website of United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, accessed Jan. 18, 2023]

In addition to the 74,096 truckloads of commodities, thousands of trucks entered Gaza from Israel carrying fuel:

[Website of United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, Accessed Jan. 18, 2023]

While statistics released by the Israeli Defense Ministry showed that from 2017-2021 Israel — incredibly — allowed 11,499 new vehicles into Gaza, the number of new cars that entered Gaza from Israel in 2022 has not yet been released.

The OCHA website further revealed that in 2022, in addition to the 424,417 exits from Gaza into Israel, there were an additional 245,145 exits from Gaza, via the Rafah crossing, into Egypt.

[Website of United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, accessed Jan. 18, 2023]

In addition to the movement of people, 32,353 truckloads of commodities also entered Gaza from Egypt through the Rafah crossing. All the commodities that entered Gaza from Egypt were for commercial use. No humanitarian goods entered Gaza from Egypt.

[Website of United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, accessed Jan. 18, 2023]

Fuel also entered Gaza from Egypt via the Salah Ad-Din crossing.

[Website of United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, accessed Jan. 18, 2023]

While Gaza is controlled by the internationally designated terror organization Hamas, which continues to hold in captivity the bodies of two Israeli soldiers — Lt. Hadar Goldin and Staff Sergeant Oron Shaul — and two mentally impaired Israeli citizens — Avera Mengistu and Hisham A-Sayed — in complete breach of humanitarian law, the OCHA statistics reveal that 100% of the humanitarian commodities and 100% of the industrial fuel enter Gaza via Israel.

Liberated from the illegal 1948-1967 Egyptian occupation, Israel administered the Gaza Strip until it entirely withdrew from the Gaza Strip in 2005, uprooting Jewish settlements and over 8,000 Jews who had made Gaza their home. Since that withdrawal, Israel has no commitment to Gaza. In contrast, since the 2005 withdrawal, terrorists from Gaza have fired and launched tens of thousands of missiles and other incendiary devices at Israel, indiscriminately targeting Israel’s civilian population.

In the month of August 2022 alone, terrorists from Gaza launched 1,233 missiles into Israel.

Since the UN’s own statistics clearly debunk the false claim that Gaza is under “blockade” or “siege,” and since these statistics are widely available, the question that begs is why, nonetheless, this lie persists.

Maurice Hirsch, Adv. is the Head of Legal Strategies for Palestinian Media Watch, where a version of this article first appeared.