The fuel passed through the Kerem Shalom crossing point, announced the Israeli Defense Ministry body overseeing civil affairs in the Palestinian territories.
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Israel announced the delivery of 200,000 liters of fuel to the Gaza Strip on Friday May 10, after a UN warning. This measure was made public by Cogat, the Defense Ministry’s body overseeing civil affairs in the occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip. The fuel transited via the Kerem Shalom crossing point. After inspecting the trucks, he “was transferred to meet the current essential needs of the international community, including hospitals, humanitarian areas, logistics centers and the distribution of humanitarian aid”continues Cogat.
An essential fuel for humanitarian activity
“We must not forget that Israel cut off electricity at the start of the war”commented Sylvain Groulx, emergency coordinator for Médecins sans Frontières in the Gaza Strip. Therefore, hospitals and other basic services such as bakeries, telephone networks or even banks must now rely on [des] generators, which require fuel”. As such, “It is therefore imperative that Israel, by virtue of its responsibilities as an occupying force, provide electricity or ensure that fuel is available in sufficient quantities.”
Defying international warnings, the Israeli army has been carrying out an operation in the east of the city of Rafah since Tuesday and has taken control of the Palestinian side of the border crossing with Egypt. This is a nerve gateway for humanitarian aid convoys and the only one through which fuel had previously passed. Rik Peeperkorn, head of the World Health Organization for the Palestinian Territories, insisted on Wednesday on the absolute necessity of letting the fuel in, without which “all humanitarian operations, including hospital operations, stop”.
