By Alon Aviram

Protesters run from Tear gas in Kufr Qaddum November 16, 2012 (photo: Tal King)

In light of the current situation in Gaza and the south of Israel, there was visibly a smaller presence of press at protest sites. Some activists had feared that this factor would invite the Israeli military to be more heavy handed in its policing.

As soldiers enter the village of Kufr Qaddum, a B’tselem photographer continues to record events, November 16, 2012. (photo: Tal King)

Iyad, a resident of Qaddum, made it clear that while Friday’s demonstration was part of a weekly response to local Israeli army policies, “more people have come out today than usual in order to show solidarity with Gaza and its people.” As Israeli soldiers entered the village, protesters could be heard shouting chants in solidarity with Gazans.

As of ten years ago, the main road leading in and out of the village of Qaddum was blocked by the Israeli army. The road was reportedly closed in order to prevent Palestinian traffic from driving past the neighboring settlement of Kedumim. After years of court-based appeals and various other political efforts, local residents have resorted to weekly demonstrations in a bid to force the army to reopen the road.

Yusuf Saba, 26, receives treatment after being hit in the head by a tear gas canister. November 16, 2012. (photo: Alon Aviram)

Volleys of tear gas canisters were fired into the village as people protested on the blocked road. As soldiers advanced, forcing the crowd to run back into the village, one young man was knocked to the ground by what was likely a rubber bullet. Another resident, Yusuf Saba, 26, of Qaddum, was hit in the back of the head by a tear gas canister. A local ambulance crew were quick to respond and worked to stop the blood flow. He remains hospitalized in Nablus.

Soldiers are temporarily chased out of the village of Qaddum, Nov. 16,2012. (photo: Tal King)

Palestinian youth blocked traffic on Hebron Road and marched toward the Old City of Bethlehem in a protest against rising costs of living (photo: Ryan Rodrick Beiler/Activestills.org)

In April 1994, Israeli and Palestinian negotiation teams met in Paris to sign one of the most important annexes to the Oslo Accords – the Paris Protocol, the agreement which regulates the economic relationship between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

Today, 18 years after the protocol was signed, demonstrations against the agreement have spread across the West Bank. A Palestinian from the Gaza Strip set himself on fire and two Palestinians in the West Bank tried to do the same in protest against the economic situation. Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad was reported to be considering resignation and Palestinian Authority Minister of Civilian Affairs Hussein a-Sheikh submitted an official request to Israel to review the Paris Protocol. In view of the heated debate, here we provide some general background on the agreement and its implications.

The Paris Protocol?

The protocol defines the economic relationship between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. It was signed for an interim period of five years and was to be implemented gradually. A senior official in the Israeli Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor told Gisha that the fact that the agreement was due to remain in effect for only five years helped encourage Palestinian negotiators to sign it: “They understood that in order to make progress, they had to agree to some very practical things. It was a five-year agreement so they said ‘let’s take the first step.’”

According to the same official: “At that point in time, it was the optimal agreement and the Palestinians entered it wholeheartedly. By the way, there are still people today who think it’s a good agreement. Albeit with limitations… as long as people are thinking about what is and isn’t good, you know you have some kind of balance.”

How is the protocol connected to the protests in the West Bank?

According to the Paris Protocol, the Palestinian Authority must peg its gasoline prices and value added tax (VAT) rate to Israel’s. Therefore when VAT in Israel was recently raised by one percent, the Palestinian Authority also raised its own VAT from 14.5 percent to 15.5 percent. A senior Palestinian official told Israeli news website Walla! (Hebrew): “There is no denying that we are a part of Israel’s economy. If Israel raises the price of cigarettes, our cigarette prices go up. If the price of gas goes up, so does ours. If things are expensive in Israel, they are expensive here too.” The official also believed that the Palestinian VAT increase would “not cause a stir” among the Palestinian public. He was wrong.

In response to the demonstrations, the Palestinian Authority announced (Hebrew) that it would cut fuel and cooking gas prices, reduce the VAT to 15 percent and pay Palestinian Authority employees NIS 2,000 from their August salaries, which have yet to be paid. It is unclear whether the Palestinian Authority has reached a new agreement with Israel on fuel prices and the VAT rate, but statements made by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu seem to indicate that the agreement was in fact changed (Hebrew): “We have made some changes to the tax agreements. We are advancing certain transfers. We have also helped with Palestinian workers and a number of other measures to assist them.”

What does the protocol say?

The protocol regulates the relationship and interaction between Israel and the Palestinian Authority in six major areas – customs, taxes, labor, agriculture, industry and tourism. The protocol also stipulates that the Palestinian Authority establish a monetary authority responsible for regulating and implementing economic policies in these areas. It is worth noting that for various reasons, not all decisions included in the agreement are necessarily being implemented today. For example, Israel has significantly reduced the number of Palestinians who are permitted to work in Israel and the settlements and almost no goods from the Gaza Strip are sold in the West Bank and Israel.

Customs – The protocol establishes a customs envelope which is something between a customs union and a free trade zone. As stipulated in the Oslo Accords, Israel continues to control all borders – its own and those of the Palestinian Authority. The envelope was designed to allow the free flow of goods between Israel and the Palestinian Authority. According to the agreement, all goods that are imported into the envelope must meet Israeli import regulations and criteria. Export was not subjected to any taxes or major restrictions since it is the importing country that is responsible for checking the standard of goods entering its territory.

Taxes – Before the Paris Protocol was signed, the Israeli Civil Administration collected taxes from residents of the Palestinian territory and spent this revenue on them. The customs Israel collected from the Palestinians, however, remained in its treasury. Under the Paris Protocol, revenue from customs would be transferred to the Palestinians monthly and the Palestinian Authority would be able to collect taxes directly from residents. The protocol also stipulates that the Palestinian Authority’s VAT rate would remain similar to Israel’s and would not be more than 2 percent lower.

Labor – The agreement stipulates that both sides “would try to ensure normal movement” of laborers between the Palestinian Authority and Israel and that each side had the right to establish quotas and criteria for entrance of laborers into its territory. Palestinians working in Israel would pay national insurance, and Israel would transfer funds collected from these workers to the Palestinian Authority once a month.

Agriculture – The Paris Protocol also established a single phytosanitary (plant health) envelope for Israel and the Palestinian Authority. The protocol established that Palestinian agricultural and veterinary products meant for sale in Israel would have to meet Israeli phytosanitary standards. All restrictions that had been placed on the sale of agricultural products from the Palestinian Authority in Israel were cancelled with the exception of six types of produce. Produce in these categories was subjected to quotas for four years, after which it could be sold freely in Israel.

Industry – All Israeli imposed restrictions on building factories in the Palestinian Authority and on industrial export abroad were cancelled.

Tourism – The agreement stipulates the establishment of a Palestinian tourism authority responsible for the regulation, licensing, classification and supervision of the tourist industry, services and sites in the Palestinian Authority.

What about Gaza?

Following the implementation of the disengagement plan, Hamas’ takeover of the Gaza Strip and the development of the tunnel economy, Israel changed its approach to Gaza and some of the essential components of the protocol became difficult or impossible to implement. Today, although the Gaza Strip is still formally part of the Paris Protocol, in many ways, the agreement is no longer applied to the Strip, mostly with respect to the entry of goods and workers from Gaza to Israel. So, for example, Gaza export to Europe via Israel is negligible, and, contrary to the agreement, Israel prevents the sale of Gaza-made products in the West Bank and Israel as part of its “separation policy.” The movement of people to and from the Gaza Strip is also extremely limited and Israel does not allow Palestinian workers from Gaza to enter its territory.

However, significant cooperation still continues. As set out in the protocol, Gaza importers still pay Israel customs, VAT and purchase taxes (when required) on goods that they import via Israel. Price increases in Israel also affect prices in the Gaza Strip since many of the goods that enter Gaza through the Kerem Shalom crossing are Israeli. Even the rift between the Palestinian Authority and the Hamas government is not as comprehensive as one might think. The Palestinian Authority continues to transfer some of the tax monies collected by Israel to the Gaza Strip.

This post was originally published on Gaza Gateway, a site created by Gisha. Gisha is an Israeli non-profit organization founded in 2005 whose goal is to protect the freedom of movement of Palestinians, especially Gaza residents. Gisha promotes rights guaranteed by international and Israeli law.

Read also:
Photo essay: Palestinians protest high prices, Israeli  economic control
Palestinians take to streets in call for Fayyad to step down
PA-Israel trade agreements only stabilize occupation

Palestinian youth blocked traffic in Bethlehem in a protest against the rising cost of living and the Palestinian Authority leadership, September 8, 2012. (photo: Ryan Rodrick Beiler/Activestills.org)

Since demonstrations started in the first week of September, Palestinians have regularly blocked roads in major West Bank cities, protesting the high prices for food, fuel, and other basic necessities, many of them criticizing the Palestinian Authority and calling for the resignation of Prime Minister Salam Fayyad. Protesters also targeted the Oslo Peace Accords, which were signed with Israel 19 years ago last Thursday. Many called for the abolition of the Paris Protocol, an annex to the Oslo agreement that preserves Israeli domination of the Palestinian economy.

Palestinians block traffic in Ramallah’s busy Al-Manara square on September 4, 2012, protesting the high cost of living and calling for the resignation of the Palestinian National Authority’s PM Salam Fayyad and an end to his neoliberal “austerity” policies. (photo: JC/Activestills.org)

A Palestinian youth wears at T-shirt saying “No to High Prices” while another beats a plastic bucket in a march in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, September 10, 2012. (photo: Ryan Rodrick Beiler/Activestills.org)

Palestinians burn papers reading “Paris Agreement” during protests in Ramallah, September 11, 2012. (photo: Anne Paq/Activestills.org)

Palestinian heavy equipment drivers block traffic at Bethlehem’s Bab Iskak intersection to protest the high cost of fuel and food, September 10, 2012. (photo by: Ryan Rodrick Beiler/Activestills.org)

Palestinians march in front of the Muqata, the Palestinian Authority headquarters, in the West Bank city of Ramallah, September 11, 2012. Protesters condemned continuous increases in taxes, cuts to public sector wages, and the Paris Protocol on Economic Relations. Some protesters also called for the end of the Oslo Accords. (photo: Anne Paq/Activestills.org)

The main taxi station in the West Bank city of Nablus seen empty and closed during a public transport strike on September 10, 2012. (photo: Ahmad Al-Bazz/ Activestills.org)

A Palestinian motorist is confronted by taxi and truck drivers blocking traffic at Bethlehem’s Bab Iskak intersection to protest the high cost of fuel and food, September 10, 2012. The sign on the left reads, in effect, “Take my blood, and give me the same amount of diesel.” (photo by: Ryan Rodrick Beiler/Activestills.org)

In response, Fayyad announced last Tuesday numerous measures aimed at placating the demonstrators, including a promise to lower fuel prices to their previous levels, a cut to Value Added Tax (VAT), and the payment of salaries to public sector employees, which have been long delayed. He pledged that these costs would be paid for by cuts to top-level salaries across all PA ministries.

Hand-drawn posters held by Palestinian youth mock Palestinian National Authority’s Prime Minister Salam Fayyad and protest high prices, September 10, 2012. (photo: Ryan Rodrick Beiler/Activestills.org)

A sign reads: “Salam Fayyad, the hero of raising prices!” as Palestinians block traffic in the main street of Bethlehem, September 6, 2012. (photo: Anne Paq/Activestills.org)

The same day Fayyad announced his measures, Israel reinforced the notion that the PA — through its various agreements and security cooperation — is itself a tool of occupation, by releasing a NIS 250 million advance on tax payments collected on behalf of the PA, and asked that other foreign governments provide funds as well, to help it weather the current crisis. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu went as far as to say that such measures were “in our joint interest.” However, in response to PA requests to reform the Paris Protocol, Israeli officials shut the door on Monday, claiming that any review of the agreement could not be treated separately from the Oslo Accords but must be part of new comprehensive peace talks.

A masked protester wears a sign reading “We did not forget the Mofaz days” (referring to earlier protests against the planned visit of Israeli Vice Prime Minister Shaul Mofaz, which were violently repressed by the PA police), September 11, 2012. (photo: Anne Paq/Activestills.org)

Marchers pass Palestinian police watching from behind iron gates at the PA headquarters in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, September 10, 2012.

Though demonstrations have lulled in the wake of Fayyad’s announcement last week, more strikes and marches have been announced for the coming days, indicating that this movement is far from over, with both activists and commentators wondering if their focus will move beyond the PA, and challenge the occupation itself. As Jamal Jum’a, director of the Stop the Wall campaign, stated in an interview with The Real News, “All that has been done [by the PA] we can’t find anything that we can rely on… I know this is coming out of the limitation of the PA. If you want to be serious, you need to confront Israel.”

A Palestinian boy holds a poster replacing the eagle in the symbol of the Palestinian Authority with a chicken, September 10, 2012. (photo: Ryan Rodrick Beiler/Activestills.org)

Here’s how we treat people who dare cycle where they’re not supposed to.

Yes, I said “cycle.” For this you are punished with a rifle to the head, in a bunt move that would make most major league baseball players jealous.

According to the WAFA news agency, “Israeli forces Saturday broke up with force a cycling tour around the Jordan Valley and assaulted the participants injuring and arresting a number of them.”

In this album of pictures on Facebook, one can clearly see this officer seemed to be in a pretty aggressive mood with more than one activist while walking around with his rifle in bunt position and a look that could kill.

17:05: I have requested a comment from the IDF spokesperson unit.

17:10: Just got this link, which shows a few 15 seconds before the hit:

17:40: According to this video from December 2011, the officer is the deputy commander of the Jordan Valley brigade, Shalom Eisner. In this clip he is thanking volunteers who help out in rescue operations.

20:17: Another picture from the event yesterday:

(photo: Hamzi Zbidat)

22:07: The IDF response:

The IDF Spokesperson’s unit said in response the event was very serious and that the Central Command chief had ordered a thorough investigation. “The inquiry will examine the circumstances which led to the incident documented in the video. Lessons will be drawn and the necessary steps will be taken.”

22:15: Praise for Lt. Col. Eisner is flooding the Israeli social media, here and here [Heb] for example.

22:30: A source who approached me and wishes to remain anonymous at this point has informed me that Lt. Col. Eisner is set to be the next deputy commander of Bahad 1 – the IDF’s training base for all of its officers. This piece of info could not be confirmed.

The IDF spokesperson in response: “We do not discuss IDF appointments in the media until they are signed and sealed. When appointments are confirmed, the media is notified.”

Leading Bahad 1 is considered to be one of the most prestigious jobs in the IDF. Some of its former commanders were Shaul Mofaz, Giora Eyland, Matan Vilnai, Elazar Stern and others who later became high-ranking generals or Chiefs of Staff. If Lt. Col. is reprimanded by the IDF for his conduct, this incident could block any future promotions.

The IDF might want to think twice if this is the kind of officer they want as an example to others.

22:35: Lt. Col. Shalom Eisner is the son of late Rabbi Benny Eisner [Heb], an icon of religious Zionism who also lived in th “Jewish House” in Abu Tor, East Jerusalem.

23:15: Haaretz brings response of National Union MK Michael Ben Ari:

“Well done to the IDF officer who did what Bibi and Aharonovich have no brain or courage to do,” Ben Ari said. “Radical leftists must be handled with a heavy hand. There was a tangible threat to the lives of the soldiers and the officer had no other choice. If it was a settler who was beaten we would not have heard the cries of the hypocrites on the left. Turns out they are not interested in human rights but the rights of terrorists and pro-Arabs.”

23:24: Amos Harel of Haaretz reports that Lt. Col. Eisner is to be suspended, yet says that in other similar cases a suspension does not necessarily mean the end of the officer’s career [Heb].

23:33: Lt. Col. Eisner responds: “I shouldn’t have raised my weapon like that, but those were 6 seconds out of two hours. Of course they didn’t show the part where they attacked us with sticks.”

 00:07: PM Benjamin Netanyahu: “This behavior is not characteristic of IDF soldiers and commanders and should not be allowed in the IDF or in Israel.”