29.11.2007
A month ahead of the Christian and Muslim holidays (Christmas and Id al-Adha) HaMoked reminds that entry to Gaza for family visits should be permitted, and advance preparations should be made for the busy traffic of individuals through the Erez crossing: this after the military, unexpectedly and unlike previous years, did not allow Israelis to enter the Gaza Strip on last Id al-Adha, preventing them from celebrating with their families
On November 26, 2007, HaMoked contacted the GOC Southern Command, demanding that the military uphold its commitment to the court, to allow Israelis to enter Gaza on the holidays to visit their relatives along with their spouses and minor children. Israel currently forbids Gaza Palestinians to travel to Israeli territory, and all but forbids Israeli residents and citizens to enter Gaza. As a result, family ties between Gaza residents and their Israeli relatives, are nearly severed. The only times families can meet are the holidays, Muslim or Christian, traditionally celebrated in a gathering of the whole family.
This year's Id al-Adha is due on the third week of December, and Christmas is celebrated in December and January, according to the different churches. HaMoked emphasizes that in order to enable Israelis who wish to celebrate the holidays with their family to do so in comfort, the military should prepare in advance, and allow them to enter Gaza on the eve of the holiday, rather than on the actual day. Adequate facilities should be installed in the Erez crossing, including, among others, benches, toilets and drinking fountains. The demand to allow the holiday visits gains strength due to the inability of many Israelis to visit their family in Gaza as result of the continuous tight closure on the Gaza Strip.
It should be recalled, that, exceptionally, on last Id al-Fitr, in September 2007, the military refused to allow Israelis to meet their relatives in Gaza. The state relied until then on outdated security reasons, and, according to HaMoked, presented a false picture of the situation current in Gaza and the Erez crossing.
