the economy collapses in the West Bank after months of clashes between the Israeli army and Palestinians

Jenin market stalls are well stocked, vendors are there, but the crowd is sparse. The yellow taxis are empty, stopped in the parking lot. In this city in the northern occupied West Bank, the economy is on the verge of collapse. It suffered from the Covid pandemic and now suffers from inflation and constant clashes between the Israeli army and Palestinian civilians.

>> West Bank: Palestinian teenager killed in clashes with Israeli army

In the West Bank, the situation has been very tense since the attacks in Israel last spring. There are almost daily clashes between the Israeli army, which speaks of “fight against terrorism” and the Palestinian fighters who pose in “martyrs and resistance fighters”. Since January 1, 2022, 18 people, mainly civilians, have been killed in attacks in Israel and 97 Palestinians in the West Bank, civilians and combatants. Jenin is particularly affected. This is where Palestinian Al-Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh was shot in the head on 11 May. The Israeli army recognized, on September 5, a “strong possibility” of killing the reporter. It is in this context that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is to speak on Friday, September 23, at the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

In the 2010s and until the Covid pandemic, Jenin was rather prosperous, attracting in particular Israeli Arabs from Nazareth or Umm al-Fahm, but everything stopped. “The situation here is catastrophicsays Mohamad, a sports and paramilitary equipment seller. You go to bed at night with the sound of gunfire and you wake up in the morning to learn that this person has been killed or that this friend has been arrested by the Israelis.” The trader denounces the “military operations” from the Israeli army: “They kill people, it’s not normal”. “Because of this, people no longer want to come and shop in Jenin. They are afraid, they prefer to go elsewhere”explains Mohamad.

But it is not final, for Ali, 26 years old. “Let’s hope the situation improves for people coming to Jenin and for Jenin’s economy”says the Palestinian who has been employed for four years in a DIY and household appliance store.

“After every Israeli operation in Jenin we always go on strike when a Palestinian is killed, it’s to respect the martyrs.”

Ali, a 26-year-old Palestinian

at franceinfo

After the death of an Israeli army officer on Wednesday September 14, the entry points to Jenin were closed. They reopened a few days later, but the crowds are definitely not the same, according to Mohamad Jamal, Director General of the Jenin Chamber of Commerce and Industry: “Before the military operations five months ago, the number of cars entering the city every day from the checkpoints was around 7,000, now we are only talking about 3,000.”

“The economy needs peace. Israel is not making it easy for us.”

Mohamad Jamal, Director General of Jenin Chamber of Commerce and Industry

at franceinfo

Mohamad Jamal would like the Israelis “end the occupation”. After, “the economy will be fine, politics will be fine, people’s lives will be fine, even our vegetables will be fineassures the manager. Trust me, even their taste will be different!” According to the United Nations, the unemployment rate there is 26%. In one year, the share of the food insecure population has gone from 9% to 23%.