Egypt trucks fuel to Gaza, Hamas says relationship getting better

Egypt trucked 1 mn litres of inexpensive diesel fuel to Gaza’s sole power plant, Fares Akram reports for the Associated Press. Akram says the shipment is “rare” and eases an electricity crisis temporarily, but it also appears to undercut Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who has been trying to get Hamas cede ground in Gaza. The Egyptian fuel shipment is expected to provide about 50 MW of power each day for several days, making up the cut in supplies from Israel. “It was not clear whether the Egyptian deliveries were a one-time gesture or would continue,” Akram notes. Senior Hamas official Khalil Al Hayya says the group’s relationship with Egypt “is getting better and Egypt showed high understandings of the crisis in Gaza.”