Israel has halted some cement imports to the Gaza Strip after it emerged that parts of the shipments were being retained by Hamas officials.
The Times of Israel reports that the freeze on cement imports – which does not affect imports bound for public sector programmes – was imposed on Sunday, 3 April 2016. Israel has previously imposed stoppages on cement imports to Gaza over concerns that material was being diverted to build tunnels across the border.
In a statement released on Monday, the UN urged a “rapid resolution”, adding that those responsible for preventing material needed for the reconstruction of Gaza from reaching its intended beneficiaries were “stealing from their own people and adding to the suffering of Palestinians”.
