US cable: Corruption rife at Gaza crossing
January 7, 2011, Friday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
A US diplomatic cable released by WikiLeaks yesterday quoted American officials as saying a key Israeli cargo crossing for goods entering the Gaza Strip was rife with corruption.
The June 14, 2006, cable, published yesterday by Norway's Aftenposten daily, says major American companies told US diplomats they were forced to pay hefty bribes to get goods into Gaza. It was unclear whether the practice still continues.
There was no immediate comment from Israel.
The document quoted a local Coca-Cola distributor as saying he was asked to pay more than US$3,000 to get a truckload of merchandise through the Karni crossing. The executive claimed an unidentified "high-level official" at the crossing headed the corruption ring.
"Corruption extends to Karni management and involves logistics companies working as middlemen for military and civilian officials at the terminal," the document says.
The executive was identified as Joerg Hartmann, with Coca-Cola's distributor in the West Bank. The company did not return a call.
The cable says other companies, including Proctor & Gamble, Caterpillar, Philip Morris, Westinghouse, Hewlett-Packard, Motorola, Aramex and Dell, had complained of corruption at the crossing. It was not clear which companies had actually paid the bribes, though the document said Caterpillar executives refused to pay.
The alleged corruption occurred a year before Hamas overran Gaza and Israel imposed an economic blockade. At that time, however, Israeli-Palestinian violence frequently closed the border crossings.
Hartmann told US diplomats that the cost of the bribes would rise after extended closures of the border.
The June 14, 2006, cable, published yesterday by Norway's Aftenposten daily, says major American companies told US diplomats they were forced to pay hefty bribes to get goods into Gaza. It was unclear whether the practice still continues.
There was no immediate comment from Israel.
The document quoted a local Coca-Cola distributor as saying he was asked to pay more than US$3,000 to get a truckload of merchandise through the Karni crossing. The executive claimed an unidentified "high-level official" at the crossing headed the corruption ring.
"Corruption extends to Karni management and involves logistics companies working as middlemen for military and civilian officials at the terminal," the document says.
The executive was identified as Joerg Hartmann, with Coca-Cola's distributor in the West Bank. The company did not return a call.
The cable says other companies, including Proctor & Gamble, Caterpillar, Philip Morris, Westinghouse, Hewlett-Packard, Motorola, Aramex and Dell, had complained of corruption at the crossing. It was not clear which companies had actually paid the bribes, though the document said Caterpillar executives refused to pay.
The alleged corruption occurred a year before Hamas overran Gaza and Israel imposed an economic blockade. At that time, however, Israeli-Palestinian violence frequently closed the border crossings.
Hartmann told US diplomats that the cost of the bribes would rise after extended closures of the border.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
