Gaza Strip: Difference between revisions - Wikipedia

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{{main|Fatah–Hamas conflict}}

In the [[2006 Palestinian legislative election|Palestinian parliamentary elections]] held on 25 January 2006, [[Hamas]] won a plurality of 42.9% of the total vote and 74 out of 132 total seats (56%).<ref>[http://www.iht.com/articles/2006/01/25/africa/web.0125pals.php Counting underway in Palestinian elections], International Herald Tribune, 25 January 2006. {{dead link|date=June 2016|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref><ref>[http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200601/s1557518.htm Election officials reduce Hamas seats by two], ABC News Online, 30 January 2006. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629015352/http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200601/s1557518.htm |date=29 June 2011 }}</ref> When Hamas assumed power the next month, Israel, the United States, the European Union, Russia and the United Nations demanded that Hamas accept all previous agreements, recognize Israel's right to exist, and renounce violence; when Hamas refused,{{cn|date=February 2023}} they [[2006–07 economic sanctions against the Palestinian National Authority|cut off direct aid to the Palestinian Authority]], although some aid money was redirected to humanitarian organizations not affiliated with the government.<ref>{{cite news|last=Weisman |first=Steven R. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/08/world/middleeast/08hamas.html?scp=4&sq=aid&st=nyt |title=U.S. and Europe Halt Aid to Palestinian Government|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=8 April 2006 |access-date=21 May 2011}}</ref> The resulting political disorder and economic stagnation led to many Palestinians emigrating from the Gaza Strip.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2006/12/09/international/i104249S77.DTL |title=More Palestinians flee homelands |access-date=15 May 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070515044844/http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=%2Fn%2Fa%2F2006%2F12%2F09%2Finternational%2Fi104249S77.DTL |archive-date=15 May 2007 }}, Sarah El Deeb, Associated Press, 9 December 2006.</ref>

In January 2007, fighting erupted between Hamas and [[Fatah]]. The deadliest clashes occurred in the northern Gaza Strip, where General Muhammed Gharib, a senior commander of the Fatah-dominated [[Preventive Security Force]], died when a rocket hit his home.

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Director of the [[Shin Bet]] (Israel Security Agency) [[Yuval Diskin]] did not oppose easing trade restrictions, but said that [[smuggling tunnel]]s in Sinai and an open seaport in the Gaza Strip endangered Israel's security. According to Diskin, Hamas and [[Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine|Islamic Jihad]] had smuggled in over "5,000 rockets with ranges up to {{convert|40|km|0|abbr=on|sp=us}}." Some of the rockets could reach as far as the [[Tel Aviv Metropolitan Area]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?ID=178503 |title=Diskin: No aid crisis in Gaza |publisher=Jpost.com |date=15 June 2010 |access-date=12 December 2010}}</ref>

Israeli spokesman Mark Regev described Israel's actions as "sanctions," not a blockade, but a Gazan legal consultant for UNRWA called the blockade "an action outside of international law."{{cn|date=February 2023}}

In July 2010, British Prime Minister [[David Cameron]] said, "humanitarian goods and people must flow in both directions. Gaza cannot and must not be allowed to remain a prison camp."<ref name="Cameron">{{cite news |last=Watt |first=Nicholas |title=David Cameron: Israeli blockade has turned Gaza Strip into a 'prison camp' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2010/jul/27/david-cameron-gaza-prison-camp |access-date=28 July 2010 |newspaper=The Guardian |date=27 July 2010 |location=London}}</ref> In response, the spokesman for the [[Embassy of Israel, London|Israeli embassy in London]] said, "The people of Gaza are the prisoners of the terrorist organization Hamas. The situation in Gaza is the direct result of Hamas' rule and priorities."