Gaza power plant
Photo: AFP
EU agrees to resume fuel supply to Gaza
European Union agrees to resume funding fuel shipments to main power plant in Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip after receiving assurances bloc would have greater oversight
The European Union said on Tuesday it agreed to resume funding fuel shipments to the main power plant in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip after receiving assurances the bloc would have greater oversight.
Starved of EU-funded and Israeli-supplied fuel, the plant has cut off power to large parts of the Gaza Strip, causing widespread blackouts over the past few days in the territory.
"In agreement with the Palestinian Authority, the (European) Commission will resume Wednesday, on a provisional basis, deliveries of fuel to the Gaza power plant," the EU said in a statement.
The EU stopped paying for the fuel, provided by a private Israeli company, because it was concerned that Hamas intended to use the sale of electricity to fund its government in Gaza. Hamas Islamists seized control of the coastal strip in June after routing President Mahmoud Abbas's secular Fatah forces.
The EU, the United States and other major Western powers have imposed a crippling economic and diplomatic boycott against Hamas and its Gaza administration over the movement's refusal to recognize Israel, renounce violence and abide by interim peace deals.
