IT'S obvious that a serious problem exists when the Israeli ambassador to the US goes on The Daily Show, a humorous satire on the news that is hosted by comedian Jon Stewart and airs on Comedy Central (with segments broadcast locally on CNN), and trumpets that the blockade on Gaza has been relaxed and that snack food has been allowed into the Strip. He then haughtily turned up his nose and said that Hamas had blocked the snack food because the “pretzels weren't good enough for Hamas”. The refusal to accept bags of pretzels, of course, has nothing to do with the quality of the pretzels and everything to do with the ridiculous restrictions that make up Israel's blockade of Gaza. Among the goods Israel allowed into Gaza yesterday were canned drinks, juice, jam, spices, shaving cream, potato crisps, biscuits and sweets. All of which, if we are to believe the Israeli justification for the blockade, constituted threats to Israeli security until yesterday. Only recently has the world begun to look closely at the nature of Israel's blockade and the result has been unmitigated criticism. No one is feeling sorry for the Palestinians because they can't buy pretzels, let alone canned drinks. But the embargo has not just denied Gazans access to certain dispensable foods like pretzels and instant coffee, but it has such a far-reaching web that it has become impossible for Gazans to develop any kind of self-sustaining economy. Cutting off any nation from trade is sufficient to stifle its economy. But when that embargo, blockade, or siege reaches to a point that even humanitarian aid is cut off, it's not about economy anymore, it's about survival. __
