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A June 4 rally in Times Square, protesting the Israeli raid of a flotilla carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza. Under mounting international pressure since the incident, Israel announced on Thursday that it would ease the blockade, though details remain sketchy.

A security official, who was granted anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly about the issue, said Thursday’s decision meant there would no longer be any restrictions on foodstuffs going into Gaza, though not in commercial quantities. He added that there might also be a degree of relaxation for products required by the private sector there.

(Flickr/asterix611)

Jeff Spross was the economics and business correspondent for The Week, an economics and climate reporter for ThinkProgress, and has written for the policy journal Democracy.