Fuel shortage causes power outage in Gaza

The production of electricity has halted in the Israeli-blockaded Gaza Strip due to a severe fuel shortage in the Palestinian territory, energy officials say.

“We have completely stopped the operation of (Gaza’s sole) power plant this morning at 6:00 a.m. (0400 GMT) because we don’t have a single liter of fuel,” Fathi al-Sheikh Khalil, a senior Hamas energy official, announced on Friday.

The Palestinian official blamed the power outage on the Israeli regime’s crackdown on the underground tunnels, which serve as a lifeline for Gaza population of over 1.7 million.

“We can no longer get Egyptian fuel due to the destruction of tunnels from Egypt,” Khalil said.

In September, energy authorities in Gaza warned of an impending shortage of fuel and called on Egypt to resume deliveries to Gaza. Egypt has also blocked supply tunnels leading into Gaza over the past months.

Gaza has been under Israeli illegal siege since 2007, a situation that has made the Gazans desperately dependent on goods coming through the tunnels.

The Palestinian Non-Governmental Organizations Network (PNGO), which represents more than 130 Palestinian civil society organizations, has called on the international community to end the “continuous Israeli siege.”

Several human rights organizations and civil groups have also criticized the Egyptian army for preventing the people in Gaza from accessing most of their basic goods like construction materials, food, and fuel.