Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman on Friday ordered that the transfer of fuel into Gaza be stopped in wake of the continued violencealong the Gaza border.
The announcement came after IDF soldiers eliminated several Gaza terrorists who detonated a bomb on the Israel-Gaza border fence and attacked an IDF position inside Israel. There were no injuries among the Israeli soldiers.
"Israel will not tolerate a situation in which fuel tankers are allowed into Gaza on the one hand, while terror and violence against IDF soldiers and citizens of Israel is carried out on the other hand," said a statement on behalf of Liberman.
"Hamas continues to welcome any terrorist attack and encourages Palestinian residents of Judea and Samaria to carry out attacks against Israeli citizens. In light of all this, Defense Minister Liberman has decided to stop the flow of fuel into Gaza immediately," added the statement.
Earlier this week, Israel permitted Qatari-purchased fuel to enter Gaza in a bid to ease tensions in the region. Friday’s violence began just hours after four fuel tankers entered Gaza through the border with Israel.
Israel regularly allows humanitarian aid and construction materials into Gaza, even as Hamas continues to attack southern Israel with rockets and incendiary kites and balloons, openly threatens to destroy the Jewish state, and organizes the weekly violent demonstrations in which Gazans try to infiltrate Israel through the border fence.
