throughtunnelsundertheborderwithEgypt.“Thegoalwas
tokeepHamasfromgettingcement,”saysMaheral–Tabbaa,
anofficialwiththeGazaChamberofCommerce.“Butcement
fromEgyptwasavailabletoanyone,Hamasornot.”
Cementsaleshighlightthepush-me-pull-yourelationship
betweenIsraelisandPalestinians.Thetwosideshate,they
fight,theykill,theycooperate—thenthecyclebeginsagain.
Andit’sgettingmorecomplicatedasotherMiddleEastplay-
erswadein.ManyGazansbuycementfroma factoryowned
bytheEgyptianmilitarythatsendssignificantquantities
despiteEgypt’soppositiontoHamas.CompaniesfromTurkey,
a perennialchampionofPalestinianrights,haveenteredthe
Israelimarketwithcheapcementthattodayisevenbeing
usedtobuilda concretewallaroundGaza.AndtheUN,once
broadlytrustedasa neutralforce,hasbeenputonthedefen-
siveasPalestiniansincreasinglyperceiveit asanenforcerof
IsraelipolicyviatheGRM.
TheGRMrulesarestrict,andpunishmentsforevenminor
violationscanputcontractorsandsuppliersoutofbusiness
forweeksormonths.Atal-Assar’ssun-bakedplant,wedged
betweenwatermelonfieldsandanabandonedgasstation
southofGazaCity,clerksmustlogevery50-kilogram(110-
pound)sackthatcomesinthegate.Walkingthroughthe
rebuiltfactory,al-Assarpointsoutthedozenorsosecurity
camerashehadtoinstall—onthefrontgate,onthestorage
shed,bythetrucklot,ona lightpoleoverlookingpilesof
gravel.Insidehecursesashepassestwovideo-monitoring
systemsthatrun 24 hours a day. In Gaza, the only thing reli-
able about the electricity is frequent blackouts, so he had to
buy a pair of battery backups to ensure a steady stream of
power; if the lights go out, the internet connection fails, or a
storm knocks out a camera, he risks being shut down under
GRM rules. Flipping through a book of permits and receipts he
must show UN inspectors anytime he makes concrete, al-Assar
says the restrictions amount to “a new occupation of Gaza.”
Under the GRM, proposed projects require documents
describing what will be built, for what purpose, and the quan-
tities of materials that will be needed. That’s uploaded via
a website to Israeli and Palestinian Authority officials, who
check it for accuracy. When a project is greenlighted, the
owner of the building gets a permit to purchase cement. At an
approved store in Gaza, the buyer presents his ID and orders
thematerial.Thenhearrangestransportation—typicallya
couple of palettes with a ton or more of cement in 50kg bags—
to a concrete factory such as al-Assar’s.
Ina barrenupstairsofficeatal-Assar’splant,twoUN
inspectorssitaroundsmokinghand-rolledcigarettes,waiting
forthegrindingequipmenttokickintogear.Whenal-Assar
wants to make a batch of concrete, they scrutinize the paper-
work and approve the blending of the cement with sand,
gravel, and water. “The engineers stick their nose into every“Ijust satin the ruins
and cried”
Rubble in Gaza