Israel Controls 6.25% Of Gaza

Thursday July 29, 2010 23:18 by Brian Ennis - IMEMC & Agencies

Farmers demonstrated against the seizures of usable land for the buffer zone within Gazan territory.

Gaza Strip (rafahkid's Flickr)

Wednesday, farmers in Gaza gathered in Beit Hanoun to protest the ever-expanding internal buffer zone Israel has established inside the Gaza Strip.

They were protesting the 'no-man's land' established by Israel as a substantial amount of farmable land is included in this second border.

According to one organizer of the protest, Sabir Za'anin, the forbidden land has reached an amount near 22,500 dunums. This is equal to about 6.25% of the Gaza Strip and some estimates say it contains up to 20% of the Strip's arable land.

"Without access to land, how can we live?" asked one Gaza resident, a complaint shared by many in Gaza, as the majority would like to support themselves, get off foreign assistance and get back to work.

gaza strip | gaza siege | news report