The Israeli authorities allowed on Sunday through Nahal Oz depot between eastern Gaza and Israel more amounts of industrial fuels to operate Gaza power station and cooking gas, Gaza officials said.
Mahmoud al-Khozondar, deputy chief of petrol associations in Gaza told reporters that Israel allowed 110 tons of cooking gas, and about half a million litters of industrial diesel used to keep main Gaza power plant operating.
It is the first time that Israel allows such bigger amounts of industrial diesel and cooking gas into the Gaza Strip since the end of a 22-day military offensive on the enclave on Jan. 18, though a tight blockade still imposed on the enclave.
However, al-Khozondar said that "although Israel has increased the amounts of fuels, mainly the cooking gas, but these amounts are still not enough at all for the populations' daily consumption. "
Since the end of the Israeli offensive on Jan. 18, Israel has been partially re-opening the commercial crossings on the borders with the Gaza Strip, and only allowing humanitarian aids of food, fuels and medicine.
Meanwhile, OXFAM International, an international aid agency, has warned in a statement sent to reporters that without allowing the basic needs for reconstructing Gaza and without ending the Israeli blockade, "the process of rebuilding destruction in Gaza won't succeed."
The organization said that very small and limited amounts of basic needs were recently allowed into Gaza, as conference of donors to collect funds for rebuilding Gaza will be held on Monday in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.
"Collecting funds and aid for the Gaza Strip is so important, but the more important is to completely end the Israeli blockade imposed on the Gaza Strip and the reopening of the crossings," said the OXFAM statement.
(Xinhua News Agency March 2, 2009)