VZCZCXRO1375
PP RUEHROV
DE RUEHJM #1985/01 3080819
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 030819Z NOV 08
FM AMCONSUL JERUSALEM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 3159
INFO RUEHXK/ARAB ISRAELI COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHDC PRIORITY
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC PRIORITY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 JERUSALEM 001985 
 
SIPDIS 
 
NEA/IPA FOR HOLMSTROM/LENTZ; NSC FOR PASCUAL 
DEPT PLEASE PASS TO USAID FOR ANE/MEA:MCCLOUD/BORODIN 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/28/2013 
TAGS: ECON EAID EAGR ETRD KWBG IS
SUBJECT: SHUTDOWN OF JORDAN VALLEY CROSSING THREATENS WEST 
BANK AGRICULTURE EXPORTS 
 
REF: 07 JERUSALEM 220 
 
Classified By: Consul General Jake Walles, Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d) 
 
¶1.  (SBU) Summary:  The GOI has closed the principal 
commercial crossing in the northern Jordan Valley to 
Palestinian agriculture exports, according to Palestinian 
farmers and USG contractors.  Palestinian farmers report that 
the closure of Bardala/Bisan crossing will limit their access 
to international markets and dramatically reduce revenues. 
They claim that alternative crossings (requiring 
significantly longer drives through additional West Bank 
checkpoints) are not viable for most Palestinian agricultural 
exports.  As a result, Palestinian farmers say they will be 
forced to choose between selling their goods to packing 
houses run by Israeli settlers (who can use Bardala/Bisan) 
and selling in internal markets.  Either option fetches 
significantly lower prices.  End summary. 
 
Farmers: Bardala key to harvest season 
-------------------------------------- 
 
¶2.  (SBU) The Bardala/Bisan crossing in the northern West 
Bank was closed to Palestinian agriculture exports as of 
October 1, 2008, according to Palestinian farmers and USAID 
contractors.  These farmers report that 85 percent of 
Palestinian agriculture exports from the Jordan Valley during 
the 2007-2008 harvest passed through Bardala/Bisan crossing 
en route to international markets (reftel).  They claim the 
crossing's closure will cripple this year's export potential. 
 (Note:  The prime export season runs from November through 
April, when Jordan Valley herbs, tomatoes, and sweet peppers 
are exported to Europe and Russia and fetch high prices as 
out-of-season produce.  USAID has provided close to USD 2 
million to support agricultural development in the Jordan 
Valley, and a number of the farmers we spoke to are 
recipients of USG funding.  End Note.) 
 
Israeli settlers benefit from closure 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶3.  (C) Mazen Sinokrot, who owns farmland and a recently 
constructed packing house in the Jordan Valley, told Econoff 
on October 30 that Palestinians will not be able to compete 
with neighboring Israeli settlers if Bardala/Bisan remains 
closed.  Sinokrot said that Israeli settlers are still able 
to export via Bardala/Bisan twenty-four hours a day.  (Note: 
Sinokrot estimates that the 400 dunums of farmland he planned 
to support this season through his packing house would have 
netted farmers and workers approximately ten million dollars 
in revenue.  He estimates that farmers will get 10 to 15 
percent less from Israeli settler packing houses.  End Note.) 
 
¶4.  (SBU) According to members of the Palestinian-American 
Chamber of Commerce, some Jordan Valley farmers are looking 
to use Jalameh or Tulkarem crossings into Israel, via the 
West Bank checkpoints of Tayasir or Hamra.  The trip (which 
requires an additional permit for the checkpoints) adds 
nearly seventy kilometers to the journey.  Because of the 
travel times and limited hours of operations at the 
crossings, Palestinian produce will leave the West Bank a day 
later than Israeli settler produce picked the same day. 
USAID contractors report that the resulting reduced 
shelf-life makes Palestinian fruits and vegetables less 
attractive to buyers and lowers their prices.  In addition, 
roads from the Jordan Valley to the Jalameh and Tulkaram 
crossings are poor, resulting in further reduction of product 
quality and shelf life. 
 
Produce grown for export to be sold locally 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
¶5.  (C) Jordan Valley farmer Imad Nuseibeh told Econoff on 
October 28 that the Bardala/Bisan closure will force him to 
sell 70 percent of his harvest locally -- in Jericho and 
Nablus -- and just 30 percent to Israeli markets, where 
higher prices are fetched for his potatoes, eggplants, and 
cucumbers.  Prior to the closure, he shipped 70 percent to 
Israel.  Nuseibeh said that the closure will reduce 
international demand for Palestinian produce, as European and 
Russian buyers move to other suppliers. 
 
Farmers association makes a plea to Fayyad 
------------------------------------------ 
 
¶6.  (U) The Jordan Valley farmers association sent a letter 
to Prime Minister Fayyad on October 22, asking for his help 
 
JERUSALEM 00001985  002 OF 002 
 
 
to re-open the Bardala/Bisan crossing to Palestinian exports. 
 The association underscored the areas dependence on 
agriculture exports, describing the closure as "catastrophic" 
to the Jordan Valley economy, according to press reports. 
WALLES