Egypt sends fuel to Gaza to ease power crisis

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Egypt has sent fuel trucks to the Gaza Strip to help the region deal with an energy crisis. The rare shipment temporarily eased crippling electricity shortages in the Hamas-ruled enclave, but also appeared to undercut Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

On Wednesday, at least 11 trucks carrying one million liters of diesel entered the Gaza Strip from Egypt through the Rafah border crossing. The trucks were headed to the territory’s only power plant, which has been closed for months due to fuel shortages.

The supplies requested by the Palestinian Authority come two days after Israel began reducing electricity to the Gaza Strip and after Abbas stopped paying for it, the Palestinian president following through on one of a number of sanctions threatened to force Hamas to cede ground.

"This aid came from our brothers in Egypt after we were cut off in Gaza,” said Tawfiq Abu Naim, under-secretary of the Gaza Ministry of Interior and National Security. "We hope that Egypt continues to support our people in Gaza. We thank Egypt for the emergency supplies, and highly appreciate its position."

Abu Naim added, "The fuel deliveries come under the framework of understandings reached between Egyptian officials and a Hamas delegation during a meeting which took place in Cairo a few days ago. This aid by Egypt which you see now is the result of that meeting."

The cuts left residents with less than two hours of power a day, prompting the United Nations and Israeli NGOs to issue a warning that basic services in the area could lead to a total collapse of Gaza’s infrastructure.

According to AFP, the Gaza electricity company’s director Samir Moutair said the fuel supplies are enough to enable the power station to operate for two to three days.

Mahmoud Abbas began a series of punitive measures in Gaza in April. They include cutting the salaries of thousands of former employees, imposing taxes on fuel imports, and slashing the health care budget.

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