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OPT: Strawberries and the crossing

January 26 - Gaza Strip - For scores of people in Gaza, strawberries are their lives. This is the case for the extended family of Yosef Ghanim (Abu Mohamed), a 68-year-old strawberry farmer from Beit Lahiya in Northern Gaza. Commenting on the importance of strawberries to his family, Yosef said: My sons, my daughters, the whole family, old and young, all of us have been waiting for this strawberry season. We work hard together during this cold weather and sometimes under rain to secure our livelihoods through strawberry farming."

Abu Mohamed has 11 sons and 4 daughters (seven sons are married) and agriculture is their only source of income. Their strawberry crop has previously been exported to Europe through Israel.

In January, strawberry season starts and hundreds of families in the Northern Gaza Strip secure their livelihoods from growing and selling this crop. Under the best circumstances, strawberries are exported to markets outside the region through the Karni Crossing, the only commercial outlet for Gaza's goods and products.

Karni is controlled by the Israeli authorities and when it is closed all products originating in Gaza have no place to go but to the local market.

"We wait for this season every year. Next month strawberry season is going to be at its peak. If Karni is closed, we will not get any income for our hard work. Unfortunately, there is an economic war going on. We had a big loss last year and we are afraid of having the same this year."

When the Karni crossing is closed, vast quantities of strawberries enter the local market in Gaza and they cannot absorb such quantities. In this situation, the losers are the farmers like Abu Mohamed who says, "When Karni is open, we sell a kilo of strawberry for 30 shekels to Europe (5.5 Euros). When it is closed, we sell a kilo for 3 shekels in Gaza (.55 Euros)."

The Ghanim family is like many Palestinian families in their traditions and customs. Like many Palestinian families in Gaza, they are also suffering physical pain. Ismail Ghanim, one of Abu Mohamed's sons, was severely injured on a Gaza Beach on June 9, 2006 when seven members of the Ghalia family were killed due to the ongoing military activities taking place in the Gaza Strip.

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