GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Israel began cutting vital fuel shipments to the Gaza Strip on Sunday, following through on a promise to step up pressure on the territory's Hamas rulers after months of Palestinian rocket attacks.
Dor Alon, the Israeli energy company that sells fuel to Gaza, confirmed it received instructions from the Israeli Defense Ministry to reduce shipments.
Last month the Israeli government declared Gaza a "hostile entity" and approved the plan for cutoffs as a response to near-daily rocket attacks by Gaza militants. Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak gave the final go-ahead last week.
The Israeli Defense Ministry said in a statement Sunday that the Sufa crossing between Gaza and Israel has been closed. That crossing is used for transporting cargo in and out of Gaza. Its closing leaves only a smaller cargo crossing in operation.
Israel says it holds the violent Islamic Hamas, which seized control of Gaza in June, responsible for the continued rocket fire. Smaller militant groups have carried out mostof the rocket attacks, with Hamas militants firing mortars at border crossings. But Hamas has done nothing to stop the rocket fire.
The fuel cut drew harsh condemnation from Palestinians in Gaza, which relies on Israel for all its fuel and more than half its electricity.
"This is a serious warning to the people of the Gaza Strip. Their lives are now in danger," said Ahmed Ali, deputy director of Gaza's Petroleum Authority, which distributes Israeli fuel shipments to private Palestinian companies. "The hospitals, water pumping station and sewage will now be affected by the lack of fuel."
Ali said daily fuel shipments on Sunday were more than 30 percent below normal. He said Israel delivered 52,835 gallons of diesel fuel, compared withthe typical 92,500 gallons on a normal day, and 23,775 gallons of gasoline, instead of the regular supply of 40,000 gallons.
He said Gaza keeps about four days of fuel reserves.
Israel has also threatened to reduce electricity supplies to Gaza but has yet to do so. The fuel crunch is expected to hit the impoverished territory harder than planned cuts in electricity because the area already suffers frequent power failures. Fuel from Israel also powers Gaza's only electric plant, which provides a quarter of the territory's electricity.
Israel has already severely restricted trade with Gaza, shutting down most of the territory's industry, and conducts frequent airstrikes and small ground operations against militants. But the measures have had little effect on the rocket barrages, which have killed 12 people in recent years and disrupted life for Israelis living near Gaza.
Israeli government spokesman Miri Eisin said Israel will "not allow in any way" a humanitarian crisis to develop in Gaza. "The terrorists are bombarding the crossing points of the fuels, and we do not feel the need to supply the terrorists," she said.
Despite its conflict with Hamas, the moderate West Bank government of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbascondemned the latest Israeli measures.
The Israeli sanctions have drawn criticism from humanrights groups and members of the international community, including U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon, who have said the measures amount to collective punishment.
Palestinians and Israeli human-rights groups say that despite the 2005 withdrawal from Gaza, Israel still controls Gaza's borders and therefore remains responsible for the well-being of Gaza's 1.4 million people.
Meanwhile, a key partner in the coalition of Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert warned Sunday that he would withdraw from the government if an upcoming Israeli-Palestinian meeting includes negotiations on core issues of the conflict.
The threat by Deputy Prime Minister Avigdor Lieberman limits Olmert's ability to maneuver in the talks with the Palestinians, which have been renewed in recent months after seven years of fighting. A withdrawal of Lieberman's Israel Beiteinu Party from the coalition would weaken Olmert politically.
The Palestinians are demanding that the U.S.-sponsored conference to be held by the end of the year include talks on the major hurdles preventing a final peace agreement, including the fate of Jerusalem, Palestinian refugees and the borders of a Palestinian state.
While Lieberman's threat was not new, he has been making it more leading up to the meeting.
"We won't remain partners in the government if there will be significant negotiations on the core subjects," Lieberman told Army Radio.
Any agreement with the Palestinians must not include a concession by Israel on its control over Jerusalem's disputed holy sites nor a symbolic return of Palestinian refugees, Lieberman said. A confidant of Olmert, Vice Premier Haim Ramon, has hinted that he has discussed such Israeli offers in talks with the Palestinians.
Lieberman said he is also opposed to a connection between the West Bank and Gaza Strip over Israel, which Israel has reportedly offered in the talks.
Information for this article was contributed from Jerusalem by Laurie Copans of The Associated Press.
Front Section, Pages 1, 5 on 10/29/2007