Ramallah: The Israeli Defense Ministry has prepared a draft law allowing it to impose a special fee on goods passing through crossing points between Israel and the West Bank and Gaza. Palestinians have argued that were not even consulted about this new Israeli unilateral measure and that the proposal is a direct violation of the Paris Economic Protocol signed between the Palestinians and Israel in 1994 to organize economic relations between the two sides.
The Israeli daily the Haaretz has reported that Israel has not yet determined the size of the fee, while Palestinian sources claim that Israel plans to collect 50 Shekels per truck. Israel claims the new fee is designed to cover the cost of operating the stations which are assumed to cost Israel 200 million Shekels a year excluding security expenses.
The Israeli Defense Ministry said in a statement that that the handling services, loading, uploading, weighting and other services are normally provided for free at all land, sea and air crossing points in Israel and all over the world. The ministry dismissed claims that the fee was a tax, terming it an operating fee.
The Israeli Manufacturers Association has joined Palestinians in criticizing the draft law and has categorically rejected it.
“If someone thinks that in the current economic situation we are living in anyone can impose added costs to the business sector, whether it’s imports or exports, he is making a terrible mistake. I will do whatever is necessary to stop it,” vowed Amir Hayek who heads the association.
The Palestinian Ministry of National Economy termed the measure as real, organized military piracy, stressing that this was not the first unilateral economic decision Israel has taken with the aim of putting hindrances in the way of the Palestinian national economy.
Azmi Abdul Rahman, a spokesman for the ministry, said in a statement that Israel does not put a single article of Paris Economic Protocol in place in any way.
“The measure is a direct violation of the protocol, but if Israel puts it in place, the Palestinians would assume they were an independent state and would act separately from Israel,” he said.
He recalled Israel’s violations in relation to Palestinians travelling to Jordan via the King Hussein Bridge. Under the Paris Economic Protocol, a passenger should pay 23 US dollars, half of which goes to the Palestinian treasury, but Israel has more than doubled the fee to 50 US dollars without consulting the Palestinian side and without settling the Palestinian share.
According to the figures of the Palestinian Ministry of National Economy, the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) exports either to Israel or to the rest of the world (but via Israel) 600-700 million US dollars worth of goods, and imports from Israel 3.7 billion US dollars worth of goods. “The Palestinian and Israeli manufacturers and traders will have to settle the new fee, and that will have negative effects on the end users as the prices will rise in the Palestinian markets as traders will spare themselves the extra expense and will collect it from their consumers,” said Abdul Rahman.
