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Gaza City: The flow of fuel from Israel into the Gaza Strip came to a halt yesterday, one day after Palestinian fighters attacked a border terminal used to supply the Hamas-controlled territory.
"Gaza is on hold," said Bilal Abdul Rahman, a father of two from Gaza City, citing the shortage of petrol.
Two Israeli civilians were killed in Wednesday's attack by fighters on the border crossing at Nahal Oz, the only terminal for piping fuel to the Gaza Strip and its 1.5 million people.
Two Palestinian fighters and two civilians were also killed when Israeli troops backed by tanks responded.
The European Union, which provides fuel to Gaza's lone power plant, said it did not pump any supplies yesterday through Nahal Oz. An EU official said supplies were unlikely to resume before Sunday.
The official said the Gaza power plant had enough fuel on hand to last about a week.
Mahmoud Al Khuzundar, head of the enclave's Fuel Suppliers' Association said the Hamas-controlled government has been siphoning off nearly 30 per cent of all incoming fuel before its distribution to petrol stations.
With little fuel available, Gaza residents made due by putting off errands and by walking to work and school.
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