Deprived of fuel, Gazans keep public transport alive with junk autos and sesame oil

Date: 27 / 04 / 2008 Time: 10:50
Gaza – Ma'an –

With busses and shared taxis absent from the streets of Gaza due to Israel siege and fuel cuts, Palestinians are turning to Fiats manufactured before 1970 for public transportation.

Gazans are rolling these ancient autos out of garages and dumps because their owners do not care about ruining their engines by powering them with what fuels are available, in this case sesame oil mixed with diesel or kerosene.

Not everyone is happy with this makeshift solution.

One passenger waiting at Umar Al-Mukhtar Street in Gaza City told Ma'an's reporter, "Even those very old cars would not stop to carry you, and when they do they charge you double the normal transportation fare. They do not take you to the desired destination; they just take you close to that destination."

The Israeli occupation government sealed the Gaza Strip's borders last June and instated a series of devastating limitations on fuel imports.

The Israeli occupation government controls Gaza's only crossing point for liquid fuels, the Nahal Oz terminal. In recent weeks, it has allowed small shipments of industrial fuel for Gaza's power plant, but no fuel for cars, through the crossing.

(All this is to force Palestinians to accept the Israeli theft of Palestinian lands, which sold-out politicians refer to as recognition of Israel).

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