Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa's motorcade comes under fire in Ecuador
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in Lebanon: Israeli quadcopter drops two shells on cafe in Houla town in South Lebanon
Informed source to Al Mayadeen: SDF Commander-in-Chief Mazloum Abdi demands that al-Sharaa approve the establishment of an autonomous region similar to the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.
Israeli media: Three drones launched from Yemen toward Eilat in span of 20 minutes.
Qatari Foreign Ministry: "Israel" should have already ceased fire under Trump plan for Gaza
Qatari Foreign Ministry: Release of Israeli captives will mark end of war in Gaza in accordance with Trump plan.
Israeli media: Security incident in Gaza Strip classified as serious results in six wounded soldiers so far, two critically injured.
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in South Lebanon: Israeli drone strike targets vehicle in Deir Ames, Tyre governorate.
Lebanese Ministry of Health: Final toll from airstrike on car in Zebdine, Nabatieh District: Two martyrs, four injured
Egyptian media: Indirect talks between Hamas and Israelis begin in Sharm el-Sheikh.

After Gaza, how 'Israel' is choking the economy in the West Bank

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: The New York Times
  • 28 Jul 2024 10:36
  • 3 Shares
6 Min Read

A recent New York Times report sheds light on the severe repercussions of the brutal Israeli aggression on the West Bank since October 7, detailing its devastating effects on the local economy.

Listen
  • x
  • A Palestinian man walks past two Israeli military personal carriers during an Israeli raid on the occupied west bank refugee camp of Tulkarm, on Tuesday, July 23,202. (AP)
    A Palestinian man walks past two Israeli military personal carriers during an Israeli raid on the occupied West Bank refugee camp of Tulkarm, on Tuesday, July 23, 2024. (AP)

A recent report from The New York Times highlights the severe repercussions of the brutal Israeli aggression on the West Bank since October 7 and its devastating effects on the local economy. 

With the Israeli closure of checkpoints, Palestinians in the '48 occupied territories can no longer come to Jenin and Tulkarm to shop, and West Bank Palestinians cannot travel to work in "Israel", drastically reducing incomes, the report contended.

Less than three years ago, Wassif Frahat invested $3 million to open the opulent, two-story Ali Baba restaurant, which symbolizes his hope for a better future.

Israeli aggression shatters future of Palestinian youths

Located in Jenin, Ali Baba is only a few minutes' drive from the Israeli al-Jalamah checkpoint, north of Jenin in the occupied West Bank, which typically allows Palestinians from the '48 occupied Palestinian territories to enter the West Bank and vice versa.

However, the checkpoint has been closed since the beginning of the Israeli genocidal war on Gaza. "Israel" withheld most tax revenue from West Bank authorities, aiming to weaken them and impose broader restrictions on Palestinians. The northern West Bank economy collapsed, shattering Mr. Frahat's hopes for a prosperous future.

While the brutal Israeli aggression has turned Gaza into a desert, it also plunged the West Bank into poverty, becoming a secondary front in "Israel's" war against Palestinians.

The Palestinian Authority has been able to pay only about 50 percent of the salaries owed to its estimated 140,000 employees. Since October, the West Bank, home to around three million people, has lost 144,000 jobs, and 148,000 Palestinians who worked in "Israel" are now unemployed, according to the World Bank. Before October 7, the West Bank's unemployment rate was at about 13 percent, compared to Gaza's 45 percent.

Frahat, 51, once employed 53 staff members at his Ali Baba restaurant and another one in the city center. "Now I only have 18 because business is down by 90 percent," he told The New York Times. His customer base has dwindled, not only losing Palestinians from the '48 occupied Palestinian territories but also local Palestinians, who now lack money and are constantly threatened by ongoing Israeli military raids, most notably on refugee camps in Jenin, Tulkarm, and Nablus.

The Israeli army killed seven people during a raid in Jenin on July 5, following a brutal raid in late May that resulted in the killing of twelve Palestinians.

“People are afraid to leave their homes,” Frahat said, as quoted by The New York Times.

Related News

14 nations follow France's lead in push to recognize Palestinian state

Hundreds join the March of Return in Upper al-Jalil, Palestine

'Holding on its fingernails'

In many areas of Jenin, particularly near its refugee camp, Israeli troops using tanks and armored bulldozers have torn up roads, cut water and sewage pipes, damaged power lines, and destroyed numerous storefronts and UN offices, including a recently renovated medical clinic. A similar scene can be observed in Tulkarm, with its two refugee camps.

Jenin and some of its refugee camps are seen as strongholds of armed resistance against the occupation. "Israel" has conducted frequent raids over the years, yet since October 7, these raids have only intensified and seen the deployment of drones and other tactics unemployed before.

These raids have further devastated an already struggling economy. Amar Abu Beker, 49, chairman of the Jenin Chamber of Commerce, representing 5,000 businesses, said as quoted by NYT that 70 percent of them are struggling to survive.

The chamber is attempting to repair key roads damaged by Israeli occupation forces, as the Palestinian Authority lacks funds for such repairs, according to Abu Beker. Besides the damage from the checkpoint closures, the economy has also been strained by months-long general strikes in 2022 and 2023, held in solidarity with Palestinians massacred in Israeli raids.

“The Palestinian Authority is holding on by its fingernails,” Mr. Abu Beker said. “Without money, you can’t operate.”

'I'm sick of checkpoints'

A recent World Bank report highlighted the Palestinian Authority’s deteriorating financial health, noting it has "dramatically worsened in the last three months," significantly increasing the risk of fiscal collapse. The report pointed to a "drastic reduction" in tax transfers from "Israel" and a "massive drop in economic activity" as key factors.

Measures aimed at depriving the Palestinian Authority of funds, driven by far-right members of the Israeli government who are striving to occupy more Palestinian land in the West Bank and reoccupy Gaza, have raised global concerns.

US officials have reportedly pressured the Israeli government to release withheld taxes, which constitute about 70 percent of the authority’s income. On July 3, "Israel" agreed to release $116 million, though the Palestinian Authority affirmed it was owed nearly $1.6 billion.

Anas Jaber, 27, is one of the many Palestinians who lost their jobs. Reflecting on the dire situation, he stressed, “I’m sick of checkpoints, and I want to sleep at night."

'We are a people isolated and under occupation'

At the camp entrance, under the hot sun, Mahmoud Jalmaneh, 56, shared with NYT how his life had changed while trying to sell cheap tobacco from a dusty, wheeled glass cabinet—20 cigarettes for 4 shekels, about a dollar, compared to over $8 for Marlboros, which he does not sell.

Born and raised in the area, Jalmaneh has seven children. Last July, Israeli occupation forces blew up his house, he said. “I was a homeowner, and now I’m renting, with no money left to pay the rent when the landlord comes,” he explained.

“The checkpoints are closed,” Jalmaneh stated. “There’s no money, no salaries.”

“We are lonely. We are a people isolated and under occupation. We are fighting the whole world.”

  • 1948 occupied Palestinian Territories
  • war on Gaza
  • IOF raids
  • crackdown on Palestinians
  • Israeli aggression
  • Nablus
  • Jenin
  • West Bank
  • Israeli occupation
  • Palestinian economy
War on Gaza

War on Gaza

Most Read

Tucker Carlson speaks at a memorial for Charlie Kirk, Sunday, September 21, 2025, at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona (AP)

Tucker Carlson: Israeli officers gave orders on Iran inside Pentagon

  • Politics
  • 2 Oct 2025
A Hamas fighter in combat fatigues stands before the ceremony for the handover of Israeli captives to the Red Cross in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip, Saturday, February 22, 2025 (AP)

Hamas responds to Trump plan, backs Gaza withdrawal, exchange

  • Politics
  • 3 Oct 2025
ap

'Israel' pays influencers $7K per post to whitewash Gaza genocide

  • Politics
  • 1 Oct 2025
Ships that are part of the Global Sumud Flotilla heading to Gaza are anchored off the coast of of Sidi Bou Saïd in Tunis, Tunisia, Tuesday, September 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Anis Mili)

Global Sumud Flotilla accuses Italy of sabotage, vows to sail on

  • Politics
  • 1 Oct 2025

Coverage

All
War on Gaza

Read Next

All
In this May 20, 20201, photo Marine Gen. Frank McKenzie, the head of US Central Command, arrives in Baghdad, Iraq (AP)
Politics

US spent $33 billion on post-Oct.7 genocide, wars, Brown Uni reports

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., holds a news conference to mark the seventh day of the government shutdown, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2025. (AP)
Politics

US troops face unpaid wages as government shutdown drags on

Mourners wave Hezbollah and a Palestinian flag during the funeral of Hezbollah former leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and his successor Sayyed Hashem Safieddine in the Sports City Stadium in Beirut, Lebanon, Sunday, February 23, 2025 (AP)
Politics

Hezbollah voices support for Gaza, Resistance on October 7 anniversary

Al-Aqsa Flood restored Palestinian cause on the global stage: Hamas
Politics

Al-Aqsa Flood restored Palestinian cause on the global stage: Hamas

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS