Fuel Station Owners' Syndicate Denies Fuel Shortage to SadaNews: "We Will Not Experience Interruptions"

SadaNews - Nizar Al-Jabri, the head of the fuel station owners' syndicate in the West Bank, confirmed in an interview with SadaNews that the talk about "fuel shortages" at stations during the Jewish holidays is inaccurate, noting that what is happening at some stations is a temporary decline in available quantities, not a complete interruption in supply.

To listen to the interview: 

Al-Jabri stated: "Stations are usually supplied with enough quantities to last for 48 hours, and we have not witnessed any supply interruption longer than that period," explaining that "fuel is being delivered day by day".

Al-Jabri clarified that the longest period without fuel supply was due to the Israeli refinery being closed on some days, or operating for limited hours until 11 AM only, which led to a relative decrease in quantities, but it did not reach the level of a crisis.

Regarding the crisis experienced at the stations, Al-Jabri explained that the main reason was the rumors about the closure of all crossings, following the announcement about the closure of the Karama Crossing, which prompted citizens to flock en mass to gas stations. He added: "People confused between the Karama Crossing and the internal crossings controlled by the Israeli occupation, as the Karama Crossing has nothing to do with fuel supply. We handled the situation calmly and tried to clarify through local media that the other crossings would remain operational as usual. "

He pointed out that the Israeli supply companies are keen on continuing to supply, considering that the Palestinian market is a consumer market for them, emphasizing that the distribution is done fairly among the stations and follows the same mechanism as normal days.

Al-Jabri considered that what is happening this year can be described as "exceptional", given the general conditions in the West Bank, which are different from previous years.

In conclusion, he reassured citizens by saying: "The situation does not warrant concern, even if there is a delay in supplying fuel for one day, the next day will see the delivery of sufficient and increased quantities. The West Bank is mostly closed, and movement is limited, so the level of consumption is not as high as believed."