Blockade of the Gaza Strip Israel and Egypt closed the border crossings with Gaza, marking the start of the blockade of the Gaza Strip. At the same time, international relations and aid to the Fatah-led government in the West Bank resumed and the economic sanctions lifted. Israel has been controlling and restricting the entry of Palestinians into Israel for some time. When the Al-Aqsa Intifada broke out in September 2000 Israel put trade restrictions on the Gaza Strip and closed the Gaza International Airport. The economic effects worsened after the creation of a ‘buffer zone’ in September 2001, that would seal all entry and exit
Gaza Strip Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip and the joint Israeli-Palestinian Erez Industrial Zone were dismantled, and 9,000 Israelis, most living in Gush Katif, were forcibly evicted. On 12 September 2005, the Israeli cabinet formally declared an end to Israeli military occupation of the Gaza Strip. "The Oslo Agreements gave Israel full control over Gaza's airspace, but established that the Palestinians could build an airport in the area..." and the disengagement plan states that: "Israel will hold sole control of Gaza airspace and will continue to carry out military activity in the waters of the Gaza Strip." "Therefore, Israel continues to