The head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees on Tuesday issued a fresh call to lift the Gaza blockade for the sake of its residents, saying it was too early to assess Israel's decision to ease the siege. Filippo Grandi was reacting to Israel's decision on Sunday to allow all strictly 'civilian' goods into Gaza while preventing weapons and certain dual-use items from entering the impoverished strip. 'It is too premature to say. It is very difficult to comment on whether this will lead to significant changes ... We cannot tell you yet,' Grandi told reporters in Cairo. He was neither 'optimistic nor pessimistic' but underlined the need to let goods into the Gaza Strip to help with reconstruction. 'The opportunity now is to finally end the blockade on Gaza,' he said. The new policy came amid mounting calls to ease Israel's four-year siege on the coastal enclave after Israeli forces killed nine activists in a May 31 raid on a flotilla of aid ships attempting to run the blockade. 'It's tragic, regrettable, that the world needed the tragedy of the boat to have their eyes opened to the plight of the people in Gaza,' Grandi said. 'Right now we have to negotiate every shipment, present a list and get the agreement ... We cannot go convoy by convoy, project by project. We need a new system,' he said. 'Whilst we understand the security preoccupation of the state of Israel, we also believe it is important for once, finally, to meet the needs of the people in Gaza who have no political agenda and want to lead a normal life.' The Gaza Strip is in urgent need of reconstruction following a devastating Israeli assault in December 2008-January 2009 that left many homes, schools and health centres damaged. 'Gaza needs a massive programme so we need an opening of the border to let in the materials and to export goods made in Gaza in order to revive the economy,' Grandi said. Grandi, who was in Cairo for a meeting of UNRWA's Advisory Commission which is currently chaired by Egypt, said it would take 'at least two years' after a full lifting of the blockade for Gaza to return to some sort of normality. 