Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Thursday approved a plan for limited cuts in electricity to the Gaza Strip due to continued rocket attacks from the enclave on Israel.

 

Local daily Jerusalem Post reported on its website that Barak approved a list of civilian sanctions against the Gaza Strip during a special meeting of security officials.

 

Under the sanctions plan, Israel will cut electricity for increasing lengths of time each time a Palestinian rocket is fired into Israel, said the report.

 

The decision marks the first time Israel has scaled back vital supplies to Gaza since the cabinet defined Gaza as a "hostile entity" last month.

 

However, it was not immediately known that when the sanctions would begin.

 

Once the power cuts plan was put into action, the 1.5 million population in Gaza would be affected.

 

Israel adopted the sanctions plan as a means to combat the ongoing Kassam rocket barrages that have been fired at southern Israel from Gaza since the disengagement from Gaza in August 2005.

 

On Tuesday, Barak ordered his deputy Matan Vilna'i to prepare a list of sanctions, which, supposed by military officials, would contain power cuts to Gaza in the coming days.

 

"It's clear that we have to cut off... the supply of electricity and the supply of fuel," Vilnai told Army Radio Wednesday. "We will dramatically reduce the flow of electricity from Israel over several weeks."

 

Barak was also advised to shut down one of the five power lines connecting Israel and Gaza for two hours at night.

 

"We need to show the residents of Gaza that life does not carryon freely when Kassam rockets land in Israel," a senior defense official said. "If rockets are fired, then the Palestinians will pay a price."

 

Despite Israeli threat to cut off power supplies to Gaza, Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel continued throughout Wednesday.

 

All of the rockets landed in open areas in the western Negevand caused no damage.

 

In response, Israel Air Forces struck a Kassam rocket cell in northern Gaza moments after its members launched two rockets at Israel, killing two people.

 

(Xinhua News Agency October 26, 2007)