Palestine Authority to stop paying for Gaza electricity

RAMALLAH, Palestine

The Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority (PA) on Thursday announced it would stop paying for electricity supplies to the Hamas-run Gaza Strip, according to a Palestinian official.

“The decision will come into effect very soon,” the official, speaking anonymously due to the matter’s sensitivity, told Anadolu Agency.

The move, he added, “comes within the context of the PA’s efforts to end internal Palestinian divisions by pressuring Hamas to relinquish [governance of] the Gaza Strip”.

In a Wednesday statement, the Central Committee of the Fatah movement -- which leads the PA -- vowed to take "all necessary measures" to end years of internal Palestinian division.

Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth, for its part, reported that the decision by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas had been officially relayed to the Israeli authorities.

Home to more than 2 million Palestinians, the Israeli-blockaded Gaza Strip -- governed by Hamas since 2007 -- has long suffered from a crippling electricity crisis.

The chronic energy shortfall has forced local authorities to adopt a makeshift rotation system by which power is cut in some parts of the strip so it might be provided in others.

Israel currently provides the Gaza Strip with 120 megawatts of electricity, while Egypt provides an additional 32 megawatts.

Gaza’s sole functioning power plant is able to provide only 60 megawatts, according to the Palestinian Energy Authority.