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Feature: Gazans regain profits from exporting metal waste to Israel

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E-mail Xinhua, March 01, 2021

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by Sanaa Kamal

GAZA, Feb. 28 (Xinhua) -- Five Palestinian workers from Gaza get together eight hours each day to press metal waste that will be exported to Israel, after a 15-year ban.

Two workers are responsible for sorting the scrap metal and old cars, two others press the metal waste, and another one transfers the crushed material into a big truck that will later head to Israel through the Israeli-controlled commercial crossing point of Kerem Shalom.

"Now it seems like a small production, but used to be relatively big some 15 years ago," said Mazen Ayyad, the factory owner. His place once acted as a "beehive" that employed dozens of Palestinians on a daily basis.

Then things started to change. In the summer of 2007, Hamas took control of the Gaza Strip, ousting the officials of the rival group Fatah. As a result, Israel imposed a tight blockade over the entire territory for security reasons.

Ayyad's factory, located in al-Zaitoun neighborhood in the east of Gaza, had to stop its operations. So did dozens of other factories.

The consequence was catastrophic, Ayyad recalled.

"Back in the day, I was forced to fire all my workers who then became unemployed and unable to keep their families afloat. My business has incurred heavy losses and it will take many years to bring me to the situation where I was before," said the 55-year-old father of three.

During the years that the factories remained closed, 200,000 tonnes of metal waste were accumulated in Gaza, which caused significant damage to the strip's environment, according to a Palestinian official committee.

As Israel seems to be changing its policy, allowing Gazans to develop some industries that will not harm the Israeli security, the future looks bright for Ayyad and many other business owners as well as their employees.

Right now, the Israeli authorities' decision to allow metal waste in has secured jobs for roughly 6,000 Palestinians of the Gaza Strip.

"In October 2020, we got official Israeli permission to export the metal scarp to crushing plants inside Israel, which means that we can export hundreds of tonnes of metal waste a week," Ayyad said.

Israel will reportedly permit 1,000 tonnes of such exports per week. Each tonne is sold for 200 to 280 U.S. dollars, depending on its type and quality.

Ahmed Yasser, a metal worker at Ayyad's factory, is happy about the Israeli permission. Just like many other Palestinians, he had lost his job in 2007.

"I became a poor man who relies on food assistance provided by international institutions," the 36-year-old father of two told Xinhua.

The only breadwinner of his family said that he breathed a sigh of relief when he was told to return to work, where he earns 15 dollars a day. Although the salary is not high, he is thankful to have the possibility to put food on the table.

Yasser was not the only one. Mohammed Ayyad, another worker at the factory, told Xinhua that he won't have to work as a vendor to earn some money.

The 29-year-old father of six said that working inside a metal factory is better than moving in the streets to sell home-made biscuits. "Nowadays, I work several hours a day that earns me enough money to secure a stable life for my family."

According to official Palestinian statistics and the World Bank, the blockaded coastal enclave suffers from high rates of unemployment that had reached 46 percent in early 2020.

Ayyad's factory, as well as other factories, manage their operations based on the electricity hours during the day to avoid running electricity generators that would cost them a lot.

They hope that Israel will allow all factories to resume operations soon and end its strict measures imposed on the Gaza Strip.

Meanwhile, Abdallah Halabi, an official of Israel's Coordination and Liaison Administration for Gaza, said Israel aims to improve the Gaza Strip's economy because the quality of life and economic development there can't be separated from the regional stability. Enditem