Gaza to be connected to Egypt’s power grid

The Egyptian Ambassador to Occupied Palestinian Territories Yasser Othman has announced that the Israel-blockaded Gaza Strip will be connected to Egypt's power grid within the next four to five months. In a Wednesday interview with Saudi Arabian newspaper, Al-Sharq, Othman said that Egypt and Gaza would start work on connecting their power grids within a few weeks. "This will lead to a real relief for the deepening crisis in the Gaza Strip," he said. He explained that the plan to end Gaza's power crisis was a two-phased one. During the first phase, Egypt will supply diesel to Gaza’s sole power plant and in the next one, which will take 18 months to complete, Gaza will be connected to a regional power grid in Egypt. Gaza has been blockaded since 2007, causing a decline in the standard of living, unprecedented levels of unemployment, and unrelenting poverty. The full-scale land, aerial, and naval siege has turned the enclave into the world's largest open-air prison. In mid-February, Egypt blocked the flow of diesel through the tunnels lying beneath its border with Gaza, which are used to transfer supplies into the impoverished coastal sliver amid the siege. The stoppage forced the territory's sole electricity power plant out of work, causing the enclave to start experiencing blackouts of up to 18 hours a day.