Gaza – Ma'an – Israeli authorities opened the Karem Shalom crossing on Friday for the transfer of limited amounts of fuel, Palestinian border crossing official Raed Fattouh said.

Though crossings are scheduled to open every Friday, they have been ordered closed by Israeli officials since August, decreasing the number of operating days to 5 per week. Even amid last week's fuel crisis peak, the crossing was not allowed to remain open.

According to Fattouh, 80 tons of domestic gas will be transferred into the besieged Strip through its southern border crossing with Israel, as well as 220,000 litres of industrial diesel for Gaza's power plant will be allowed through.

The entry of vitally needed fuel follows warnings from officials on Thursday that Gaza's sole power plant will cease all operations late Friday night due to a lack of fuel.

The plant had already shut down services to all but 30-40 percent of the coastal strip by nightfall on Thursday, the Gaza Energy Authority said, noting that the sudden cold front in the region spent the remaining fuel faster than expected.