Israel reopens Gaza crossing following weeklong closure

GAZA CITY, Palestine

Palestinian officials said Tuesday that the Gaza Strip's only functioning commercial crossing, the Kerem Abu Saalem terminal (Kerem Shalom in Hebrew), would be reopened following a weeklong closure.

“Around 700 trucks full of goods, including construction materials and limited amounts of fuel, are set to enter the strip [via Kerem Abu Saalem],” Mounir al-Ghalban of Gaza's border authority told Anadolu Agency.

Ghalban went on to say that the weeklong closure of the crossing had led to electricity shortages inside the strip due to a lack of fuel needed to operate Gaza’s only functioning power plant.

The Gaza Strip remains subject to a crippling blockade imposed by both Israel and Egypt since 2007.

While the coastal enclave has seven border crossings linking it to the outside world, all of them remain tightly closed for the most part.

Six of these crossings are controlled by Israel, while a seventh -- the Rafah crossing on the border of the Sinai Peninsula -- is controlled by Egypt, which continues to keep it tightly sealed.

Israel shut its border crossings with Gaza in June 2007 after Palestinian resistance faction Hamas wrested control of the strip from the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority.

Kerem Abu Saalem -- a tripartite crossing linking Gaza, Egypt and Israel -- is intended primarily for commercial use.

On Sept. 10, Israel closed the Kerem Abu Saalem crossing for five days for the Jewish New Year.