Monday, 5 January 2009
Bethlehem – Ma’an – Israel will briefly open two border crossings with the Gaza Strip to allow food, fuel, and medical supplies, even as Israeli forces continue to bombard the territory.
Hussein Ash-Sheikh, the Palestinian Authority’s Civil Affairs director in Ramallah announced on Sunday night that the Kerem Shalom cargo crossing and the Nahal Oz fuel crossing would be open.
Israel has a near-total blockade of Gaza by land, sea, and air since November. According to the United Nations, most of the Strip’s 1.5 million people are without electricity since the power plant shut down to a lack of fuel. Swamped with the dead and wounded and operating with minimal supplies, Gaza’s hospitals are at the breaking point.
The Israeli government circulated a statement Monday morning saying that 80 truckloads of medical supplies, medication, and food including donations from Greece, Jordan and Egypt are expected to cross in to Gaza through Kerem Shalom. The fuel depot at Nahal Oz is scheduled to convey some 200,000 liters of fuel both for the power station and other humanitarian needs.
According to the same statement 200 Palestinians holding foreign passports will leave Gaza to Jordan through the Erez crossing and the Allenby Bridge.
