Lives at risk if Gaza's sole power station out of fuel: Energy authority

Gaza, Oct 9

The energy authority in the Gaza Strip has warned of a potential humanitarian catastrophe brought by a massive blackout in the besieged enclave due to a fuel shortage and halted electricity supply from Israel amid the unprecedented attack on the Jewish state by the Palestinian Hamas militant group.

Fuel reserves in the Palestinian enclave are only enough to run its sole power station until Tuesday, and "if the current situation continues, Gaza will be forced to turn off the station, which threatens the occurrence of a certain humanitarian catastrophe", Xinhua news agency quoted the authority as saying in a statement.

It also said "all the electricity lines supplying the Gaza Strip and coming from Israel stopped on Sunday" following an Israeli government order.

The station is currently operating with three turbines and produces an average of 65 megawatts, and there is a deficit in electricity demand of up to 80 per cent in Gaza, home to more than 2 million people, it noted.

The authority called on the international community to pressure Israel to reconnect the power lines, and to provide the fuel necessary for the continued operation of service facilities, such as water supply and sewage as well as hospitals.

Israeli media outlets said earlier that Israel decided to stop the supply of electricity, fuel, and goods to the Gaza Strip following the October 7 attack.