The Economic Impact of the Conflict on Israelis and Palestinians
The Israeli unemployment rate is 6.1%, while the Palestinian unemployment rate in the West Bank is 16.3% and 41.3% in Gaza.
“[A] recent World Bank study predicts that, if the current situation continues throughout 2006, this may be the worst year in the Palestinian economic history. The average Palestinian’s personal income will fall by 40%, and 67% of the population will fall into poverty.”
The sharp rise in Palestinian unemployment, on the other hand, is universally viewed as resulting from Israeli policies of closure and movement restrictions.
Whenever Israel commits yet another atrocity, its defenders are quick to redirect public attention away from the grisly crime scene. Currently, there are headlines about allegedly anti-Semitic comments made by senior White House correspondent Helen Thomas. Pundits across the land evince outrage at her off-the-cuff 25-second statement made to a man who appears to be holding a camera right in her face. Read More
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