ISRAEL HIGH COURT OKAYS REDUCING FUEL AND POWER SUPPLY TO GAZA

Israel High Court Okays Reducing Fuel and Power Supply to Gaza - Yuval Yoaz
Israel's High Court of Justice on Wednesday gave the state a green light to reduce the supply of power and fuel to Gaza, ruling that the reductions are legal as they still meet the humanitarian needs of the population. Israel has sought to impose economic sanctions on Gaza in response to continued Kassam rocket attacks by Palestinians on southern Israel. The court denied petitions presented by several human rights organizations seeking to stop the government's plans to scale back the supply of fuel and electricity.

Supreme Court President Dorit Beinisch wrote: "We emphasize that the Gaza Strip is controlled by a murderous terror group that operates incessantly to strike the State of Israel and its citizens, and violates every precept of international law with its violent actions."

The three-judge panel ruled: "In the case of the attacks against Israel, the damage [to the civilian population] is not accidental, but rather a result of deliberate and frequent assaults on civilian populations which are aimed at harming innocent civilians. This is the difference between Israel - a democracy fighting for its life within the confines of the law - and the terrorist organizations trying to destroy it." (Ha'aretz)

Hamas Wants Egypt to Provide Gaza with Electricity and Fuel - Erica Silverman
"Hamas wants to keep Rafah a Palestinian-Egyptian border crossing, without Israeli interference...and to create an access point to the world, a passage for humanitarian support from Arab nations and our food imports," said Ahmed Yousef, foreign adviser to Ismail Haniyeh, the Hamas leader who was elected Palestinian prime minister in 2005. Yousef said Hamas wants to persuade Egypt to provide Gaza with electricity and fuel instead of Israel. "For three years, Egypt has only wanted to deal with Gaza on a security level; for political issues they talk with the leadership in Ramallah," said a Hamas official. "Egypt is now forced to be involved, since the border was breached." (Washington Times)