U.N. halts food distribution in Gaza

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The United Nations stopped distributing aid in the Gaza Strip, citing a lack of fuel.

 

The U.N. Relief and Works Agency on Thursday said its delivery of food to nearly 700,000 Palestinians was halted because it did not have enough fuel to operate its delivery vehicles.

 

The Associated Press reported that a local distributors’ strike has prevented fuel in Gaza from reaching the public. Sources say that Israel pumped a million liters of fuel earlier this month into the Palestinian side of the Nahal Oz fuel depot, but Palestinian distributors refused to pick up because they said it was not enough, according to AP.

 

Israel closed Nahal Oz to gas and diesel fuel after an April 9 terror attack that killed two Israeli civilian depot workers, though it continues to ship fuel to Gaza to run its main electric power plant.

 

An Israeli Foreign Ministry official said that Hamas has prevented Israel from transferring fuel directly to UNRWA.

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