Israel’s Dor Energy has partially resumed supplying fuel to the Palestinian Authority at the request of the prime minister’s office, Israel Radio reported Friday, quoted by Haaretz.
The company will supply fuel only for humanitarian purposes, to hospitals and water pumps. On Sunday, a special meeting will be held on the matter at the prime minister’s office, said the report.
The Israeli Dor Energy Company, the sole provider of fuel to the Palestinian Authority (PA), announced Thursday that it had stopped supplying fuel to the PA and that as a result, pumps supplying water to the Gaza Strip, which run on diesel would cease functioning, leaving Gazans without drinking water. No fuel would be supplied to hospitals in the Gaza Strip.
The government had issued an order last week forbidding Dor Energy to supply the PA with fuel. On Tuesday, however, the government reversed that decision, and asked Dor Energy to renew fuel sales to the PA. But the company claims it will not be able to renew sales until it is granted the same guarantees provided by the previous government.
According to Dor Energy, Finance Minister Silvan Shalom has been withholding the guarantees that the company needs in order to sell fuel to the Palestinians. The practice of the previous government was to set aside the VAT and excise tax on the company's fuel sales as guarantees for the company's sales.
The finance ministry responded to the accusations, saying the finance minister could not allow a business entity such as Dor Energy to use government funds - VAT and excise taxes - as guarantees for private business transactions made with the PA.
The Palestinians accuse Israel of resorting to power and water cuts as one aspect of the siege imposed on the Palestinian lands since the outbreak of the Intifada in September – Albawaba.com
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