Adventurer

Joined: 28 Jan 2006
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Posted: Thu Jul 10, 2008 7:55 am Post subject: Israel, Hamas trade cows for calm as part of truce |
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Israel, Hamas trade cows for calm as part of truce By KARIN LAUB and IBRAHIM BARZAK, Associated Press Writers
Wed Jul 9, 3:31 AM ET
SUFA CROSSING, Gaza Strip - An Israel-Hamas truce has boiled down to a simple trade-off: For a day of calm, Israel adds five truckloads of cows and 200 tons of cement to the barest basics it ships to Gaza, but rocket fire from the territory reseals the border for a day.
Since the cease-fire deal was reached nearly three weeks ago, the trickle of extra goods has barely made a difference in the daily lives of 1.4 million Gazans, who have been cut off from the world since the violent Hamas takeover a year ago. Gazans are struggling with frequent blackouts, soaring food prices and fuel rationing of five gallons per driver a week.
Abu Shanab, the Gaza trucker who earns just $30 dollars for a day's work at Sufa, said the militants need to start thinking about ordinary Gazans.
"We ask them to take into consideration that we live in a very bad situation," said the father of eight. "If they fire one rocket, it means we go backwards."
ARABISRAELI |
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