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Israel Eases Gaza Blockade

Ban on weapons remains in force

By M. Morris, Newser Staff | Suggested by Disillusioned

Posted Jun 20, 2010 1:55 PM CDT

(Newser) – Israel will allow goods to enter Gaza by land but will continue to ban the importation of weapons and will maintain its naval blockade on the area, CNN reports. Rather than listing what's allowed in, Israel will permit everything other than " weapons and material that Hamas uses to prepare and carry out terror ," PM Benjamin Netanyahu tells Reuters. The move comes 3 weeks after Israeli troops stormed aid ships and 10 pro-Palestinian activists died.

The US and Middle East envoy Tony Blair sounded cautiously optimistic about the policy change. "There is more to be done, and the president looks forward to discussing this new policy, and additional steps, with Prime Minister Netanyahu during his visit to Washington on July 6," the White House said in a statement. Said Blair: "Plainly there are still issues to be addressed and the test of course will be not what is said, but what is done."

Major General Yohanan Locker, the Israeli military secretary, consults with PM Benjamin Netanyahu during the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem, Sunday, June, 20, 2010. (AP Photo/Gali Tibbon, Pool)

Palestinian customs workers check trucks loaded with fruit and goods that arrived from Israel through the Kerem Shalom border crossing into Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, June 10, 2010. (AP Photo/Eyad Baba, File)

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Showing 3 of 17 comments

bewilderbeast

Jun 21, 2010 7:49 AM CDT

And the "Free World", the "Western Democracies" couldn't do this before? We could not stop Israel from starving and maltreating Palestinians? We couldn't stop a cruel and unnecessary blockade of food and essentials to Gaza? We couldn't save kids' lives? Shame on us!!

countnomis

Jun 21, 2010 2:23 AM CDT

What is WRONG with us? When are we going to become independent of Israel?

How has such a puny, insignificant excuse of a country with an addiction for atrocities managed to hijack our foreign policy? When are we going to grow a pair? This parasite---and make no mistake of it, Israel is America's tapeworm---habitually spies on us, has killed Americans, siphons billions of dollars from us, spits in our faces, has attacked our navy (remember the USS Liberty?) and its admirers keep harping that Israel is our friend. It wouldn't last two minutes without sucking us dry.

And the worst part are all the traitors in this country that would put that country's benefit over ours; no matter what atrocities the Israelis commit, they find some justification for those atrocities---usually by blaming the victims. Or, when all else fails, they bring forth their precious Holocaust.

I'm sick of it, and I'm ashamed of it. If you have any doubts that Israel controls our country, either directly, or indirectly, I challenge you to find a magazine article, a newspaper article, a TV news item or a Hollywood film that condemns Israel, or takes a compassionate view of the Palestinian victims.

CHRiSTFELD

Jun 20, 2010 9:16 PM CDT

And then there is this story: "Egypt allowed at least one Israeli and 11 American warships to pass through the Suez Canal as an Iranian flotilla approaches Gaza." (http://www.israelnationalnews....)

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Israel Eases Gaza Blockade

Ban on weapons remains in force

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