ICRC - Occupied Golan: ICRC transports 8,000 tonnes of apples to help local communities

Geneva (ICRC) – The gates at Kuneitra opened today and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) began transporting up to 8,000 tonnes of apples between the occupied Golan and the Syrian checkpoint. Three ICRC trucks made the first crossing at approximately 10 a.m. local time.

An apple transfer through the demarcation line between the occupied Golan and Syria proper is no everyday event. The ICRC is acting in its capacity as a neutral intermediary at the request of the farmers of the occupied Golan and with the approval of the Syrian and Israeli authorities.

"There has been keen interest on both sides in the apple transfer," said Jean-Jacques Frésard, the ICRC's head of delegation in Syria. "We hope this operation will help create an environment conducive to raising other humanitarian concerns – for example the fact that family members separated by the demarcation line cannot cross the gates to maintain family ties."

The operation has been coordinated with all the parties concerned, including the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF). The transfer of all of the apples is expected to take between six and eight weeks.

This will be the fourth time the ICRC has conducted such an operation at the Kuneitra crossing. While there was no apple transfer in 2008 because of poor harvests, the ICRC transported almost 8,000 tonnes of apples in 2007, 5,000 tonnes in 2006 and 4,000 tonnes during the first operation, which took place in 2005. The sale of the fruit is the main source of income for the Syrian farmers of the occupied Golan, as apple production is the backbone of the local economy.

The ICRC has been carrying out humanitarian activities in the occupied Golan since 1967 and has maintained a permanent presence there since 1988. In its role as a trusted neutral intermediary, the ICRC provides a range of services addressing the consequences of restrictions placed on the movement of the population as well as legal and administrative difficulties resulting from the occupation.