Ref: 34/2021

Date: 14 March 2021

Time: 13:00 GMT

The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) follows up the complaints and demands by the Palestinian Petroleum and Gas Association (PPGA) in the Gaza Strip  for renewing the license of fuel tanks and trucks designated for the transport of fuel.  PCHR calls upon the competent authorities in the Gaza Strip to accelerate issuance of the necessary licenses, according to the prescribed procedures, for the sake of public safety and civilian lives and to spare the population any harm.

According to information acquired by PCHR, more than 100 fuel and gas trucks operate in the Gaza Strip daily without the necessary licenses while 250 gas stations have not renewed their licenses this year, threatening the sustainability of their work as they are unable to insure their enterprises. As a result, public safety and health are under threat, and people of the Gaza Strip lose their right to claim financial and physical damages in accident-related cases.   

Engineer Ayed Abu Ramadan, Secretary of the PPGA, said to PCHR’s researcher that PPGA reached out to the Ministry of Local Governance, the Civil Defense Service, and the General Petroleum Corporation, without achieving an understanding on how to apply licensing procedures for gas stations and truck like before.  The Civil Defense claimed that the Service does not have the necessary capacities to conduct the examinations preceding the issuance of licenses, demanding to resume the old system until a new and more effective one is approved.

PCHR hereby warns of the ongoing operation of fuel trucks and stations without the necessary licenses.  PCHR calls upon the competent authorities in the Gaza Strip, including the Civil Defense, to promptly establish a system that guarantees occupational safety and health standards are available in fuel trucks and at gas stations, and to initiate licensing procedures as soon as possible.