Political adviser: Some Arab and international parties are responsible for Gaza siege

(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - Dr. Yousef Rizqa, political adviser to Gaza Prime Minister, held the Israeli occupation responsible for Gaza blockade and said that his government is in contact with the Egyptian authorities to alleviate the siege.Rizqa said in a press statement on Saturday: "The Zionist entity was able to recruit Arab regimes and international governments to participate in the blockade, therefore some Arab and international parties assume a degree of responsibility for the blockade."He stressed that his government is making every possible effort and is contacting Egyptian authorities to improve the work in the Rafah Crossing, pointing out that the Egyptian side is preoccupied with its internal affairs and that the situation in Rafah crossing has been worsening."Following the new developments in the region, and after the demolition of tunnels, and the closure of the crossing, only opening before humanitarian cases for four hours in some days, the siege is worsening," Rizqa said, pointing to the electricity crisis that has emerged due to the stoppage of Gaza’s sole power plant.Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Gaza issued a report stating that in the first six months of 2013, 182 aid convoys entered the Gaza Strip including 4,000 solidarity activists from different countries and 100 surgeons and specialized doctors, while in the second half of this year no solidarity convoy arrived to the Strip.Rizqa called on the Arab and Islamic Nation and the free world to support the Palestinian people and send convoys to break the siege on Gaza.For his part, the head of the government committee to break the siege Hamdi Shaath said that the main reason for the recent electricity crisis in Gaza is that the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah is imposing an additional tax on fuel for the power plant. One liter of fuel costs now 5.7 shekels after its price was 4.2 shekels.He called for the launch of an international campaign to break the siege on the Strip through sending solidarity convoys to Gaza, prosecuting the occupation, and opening the Rafah crossing./149