Israel suspends fuel and gas supplies to Gaza Strip

Israeli fuel company Dor Alon Sunday suspended fuel and gas supplies to the Gaza Strip, in coordination with the Israeli army and the Defense Ministry. The company said, however, that it would continue to supply the fuel needed to run Gaza Strip's power plant.

Fuel and natural gas reach Gaza Strip in trucks from Israel, via the Karni Crossing. But according to Dor Alon representatives, on Sunday they could not locate the Palestinian officials who normally oversee the transfers in order to process the latest convoy of trucks from Israel, Haaretz reported. If the supply of fuel is not renewed, company spokesmen predicted severe shortages in the Gaza Strip, both of fuel and cooking gas.

Dor Alon has been the sole provider of fuel to the Palestinian Authority since 1994. Since the start of 2007, the Israeli company has provided fuel to the Gaza Strip alone, while the Gaz company supplies the West Bank. In 2006, Dor Alon's contracts for supplying fuel to Gaza Strip amounted to NIS 750 million (some US$180 million).