Egypt's Parliament Recommends Supplying Gaza With Electricity, Fuel

Friday March 02, 2012 03:07 by Saed Bannoura - IMEMC & Agencies

The Arab Affairs Committee at the Egyptian People’s Assembly of the Parliament recommended on Thursday conducting a legal study to determine and improve the operational methods of border terminals between Gaza and Egypt, and also recommended providing the coastal region with power and fuel supplies should Israel refrain from implementing its commitments regarding providing services to the area as part of its responsibility as an occupying force.

The Assembly discussed the suffering of the Palestinian people, living under illegal Israeli siege and ongoing Israeli military attacks, in the Gaza Strip, and stated that Israel’s illegal measures are affecting the social, economic and health sectors in the Gaza Strip.

Assembly members recommended that Egypt provides Gaza with all of its electricity and fuel supplies, especially since hospitals and medical centers are unable to function due to power shortages, an issue that is endangering the lives of all patients, especially those with senior conditions, and those who need surgeries.

Gamal Hanafi, representative of the Arab Affairs committee at Egypt’s People Assembly, stated that “Egypt must continue its humanitarian role in providing services and supplies to the Gaza Strip via the Rafah Border Terminal, between Gaza and Egypt.

Also, acting Egyptian Foreign Minister, Baha’ Dsouqi, stated that the Gaza Strip is considered an important dimension of Egypt’s national security, and that Egypt considers Gaza as an occupied territory.

He added that Egypt is acting on the international level to ensure that the International Community performs its duties regarding ending the illegal Israeli siege on the coastal region, and ensuring the entry of all needed humanitarian and medical supplies.

The Egyptian parliamentarian also discussed the means to ensure the reconstruction of the coastal region devastated by repeated Israeli military assaults and bombardments, adding that the Educational System in the Gaza Strip is also heavily impacted by the Israeli violations due to the lack of construction materials needed to rebuild the schools that were bombarded and shelled by the Israeli army.

Haneyya: Power crisis will not force us to make concessions

[ 01/03/2012 - 10:14 PM ]

GAZA, (PIC)--

 Ismail Haneyya, the Prime Minister of the government in Gaza, said that the power crisis in Gaza is part of the pressures being exerted in the Gaza government to give concessions, adding that his government will not succumb to blackmail.

Haneyya said during the Friday prayer sermon in one of Gaza’s mosques: “there are parties and forces that do not want the government to continue towards finding a radical solution for the power crisis," pointing to the fact that there are contacts with Arab states and Arab and Islamic personalities to try and find a radical solution to the power crisis. He stressed that “neither the power crisis nor any other crisis will force the government to make concessions,” calling on those parties to stop putting pressure on Hamas and its government.

He stressed that there were serious efforts in Egypt and other places to put an end to the power crisis in the Gaza Strip, which causes suffering of residents of the Strip and which is an old problem.