GAZA, Feb. 20 (Xinhua) -- Commercial establishments including banks in the Gaza Strip staged a general strike on Tuesday in protest of worsening living conditions in the coastal enclave.
In response to the request made by the Palestinian factions, the strike began at 12:00 a.m. local time (1000 GMT) and is expected to last six hours.
Banners were posted on the doors of these institutions, declaring their protest against economic deterioration and demanding the lift of siege on Gaza.
Meanwhile, traffic in the Gaza City's main intersections was halted for 15 minutes.
It is the third time in the past month that the private sector in Gaza has suspended operations in protest of the difficult living conditions in the Israeli-blockaded region.
"This urgent move comes as a last resort, after the catastrophic economic and living conditions of the Gaza Strip reached the point of zero," Secretary-General of al-Ahrar Movement Khaled Abu Hilal said at a joint press conference on behalf of the factions.
Abu Hilal pointed out that Gaza has been suffering a massive siege and collective punishment since 2007, when Hamas violently seized control of the enclave after weeks of fighting with Abbas' security forces.
It also underwent three devastating wars, the last of which took place in 2014, he added.
The secretary general also called for the cease of Israeli policies and measures against businessmen in Gaza, and the unconditional entry of building materials for its reconstruction.
The unemployment rate in Gaza stands at 46 percent, the rate of poverty exceeds 65 percent, while the rate of food insecurity for households reaches 50 percent, according to the Gaza Businessmen Association.
In a previous strike in January, local truck drivers said the quantity and quality of the imported goods had reduced owing to the difficult economic situation in the Gaza Strip.
Only 350 trucks of goods now enter Gaza per day, figures show.
The Gaza Strip has been under Israel's land, naval and air blockade for more than 11 years, while Egypt has aggravated the siege by controlling the Rafah border crossing in the south, the only gateway to the rest of the world for the over two million Gazans.
