GAZA CITY
Israel has agreed to allow the entry of construction materials for UNRWA projects in the Gaza Strip, the U.N agency said Thursday.
"These projects have been suspended for two years now," UNRWA spokesman Adnan Abu Hassna told Anadolu Agency.
He said that the $24-million projects would create jobs for many unemployed Gazans.
The spokesman said that among the UNRWA projects will be the building of a school in the southern city of Khan Younis.
The Gaza Strip, home to nearly two million Palestinians, has been reeling under an eight-year Israeli blockade.
For years, the Palestinian enclave has depended on construction materials smuggled through a network of tunnels between Gaza and Egypt.
However, a recent major Egyptian crackdown on the tunnels has brought the work of hundreds of tunnels to a halt, severely affecting Gaza's construction sector.
On September 22, Israel allowed the entry of construction materials into the besieged coastal enclave for the first time in six years.
But in early October, Israeli authorities suspended the deliveries following the discovery of an underground tunnel extending from the strip into Israel-occupied territory.
By Abdel-Raouf Arnaout
englishnews@aa.com.tr
