TULKARM BUSINESSES TURN TO ISRAELI SETTLERS TO

UNCLAS JERUSALEM 000838 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS NEA FOR FRONT OFFICE; NEA/IPA FOR WILLIAMS/SHAMPAINE/BELGRADE; NSC FOR ABRAMS/DORAN/WATERS; TREASURY FOR NUGENT/HIRSON E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECON ETRD PREL KWBG IS SUBJECT: TULKARM BUSINESSES TURN TO ISRAELI SETTLERS TO TRANSPORT GOODS REF: JERUSALEM 607 ¶1. (SBU) Summary: Palestinian businessmen in Tulkarm complain that delays, road conditions, and the Israeli requirement to palletize all cargo processed through the Tulkarm/Sha'ar Efraim crossing have limited exports at the crossing to only 40 trucks daily. Some businesses have turned to Israeli settlers with access to Israeli-plated trucks to transport their goods directly to Israel, despite the higher costs (up to 30 percent of profits). The poor condition of road approaching the crossing has driven up maintenance costs by as much as 50 percent, but Israeli authorities have denied the Tulkarm municipality permission to repave the Area C road, according to local businessmen. End Summary. ¶2. (SBU) USAID's contractors working on the Palestinian Integrated Trade Arrangement (PITA) project traveled to Tulkarm on April 12 to meet with Waleed Khatep, the manager of a meat and poultry company; Ziad Othman, the manager of a textile company; and the economic advisor and other members of the Tulkarm Chamber of Commerce. Businesses Protest "One Size Fits All" Approach at Crossings -------------- ¶3. (SBU) Tulkarm Chamber of Commerce members told PITA contractors that an average of only 40 trucks cross into Israel through the Tulkarm/Sha'ar Efraim crossing daily. The businessmen said that the Israeli civilian contractor operating the crossing requires all exports from the West Bank to pass through the scanning operation in pallet-sized loads, a difficult if not impossible requirement for many furniture, mattress, and stone factories. USAID installed a 4 MeV mobile container scanner at Tulkarm/Sha'ar Efraim. Drivers at the terminal said that Israeli authorities only allow it to scan empty containers, however, because they do not have the equipment to lift full containers off the truck beds. The businessmen added that wait times are unpredictable and can reach up to three hours. They attributed the delays to poor communication between drivers and a system that requires the Palestinian truck to wait outside the crossing until its Israeli counterpart has arrived. Israeli Settlers Becoming Middlemen of Last Resort -------------- -------------- ¶4. (SBU) The businessmen said that few options remain available to businesses unable to palletize their goods. They noted that no Tulkarm businesses are able to operate Israeli-plated vehicles, as is done in Hebron (reftel). Instead, they said, beginning two to three months ago, businesses began contracting with Israeli settlers to act as middlemen, who ship the Palestinian goods to Israel on Israeli-plated trucks via settler roads. Businessmen in the textile and furniture industries said this practice erodes their companies' profitability by up to 30 percent. Poor Road Quality Increases Cost of Using Tulkarm/Sha'ar Efraim -------------- ¶5. (SBU) The road approaching the Tulkarm/Sha'ar Efraim crossing from the West Bank side is in terrible condition, according to PITA contractors who visited the site. Mohammad Yaseen, head of the Truck Drivers' Union in Tulkarm, told PITA contractors that annual maintenance costs for trucks shipping goods through Tulkarm/Sha'ar Efraim have increased by 40 to 50 percent. According to the Tulkarm Chamber of Commerce, the Tulkarm municipality applied for permission to repave the road, but Israeli authorities denied the request because the road is located on Area C land. WALLES