Fuel truck enters Gaza via Rafah crossing for 1st time since start of Israel-Hamas war

A fuel truck entered Gaza through the Rafah border crossing from Egypt, state-aligned Al Qahera News reports, in the first such delivery since the Israel-Hamas war began on October 7.

An Egyptian source says the fuel will be delivered to the United Nations “to facilitate the delivery of aid after trucks on the Palestinian side stopped operating for lack of fuel.”

The UN says that has not received anywhere near enough fuel. It is unclear whether it received the full amount that was brought in from Egypt.

“This is the equivalent of half a truck! Not at all enough. Much more is needed. Fuel is being used as weapon of war, this must stop,” UNRWA says on X, formerly Twitter.

In a separate post, UNRWA confirms receiving 23,027 liters (6,083 gallons) of fuel, saying it met only “nine percent” of what the agency needs daily to sustain lifesaving work.

The IDF delivered fuel to Gaza City’s Shifa Hospital earlier this week, but the military said Hamas prevented the medical center from accepting it.

Israel says Hamas has stockpiles of fuel and supplies that it is keeping from an increasingly desperate civilian population.