Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak has approved a plan to cut power supplies to the Gaza Strip in response to cross-border rocket fire by Palestinian militants.
It was not immediately clear when the measure will take effect.
Israel declared the Gaza Strip an "enemy entity" in September, opening the way for cuts in vital supplies to the Palestinian territory controlled by Hamas.
Palestinian officials have condemned the plan as a violation of international law.
In Gaza Thursday, the militant Islamic group Hamas said Israeli soldiers killed two of its members in a clash near the southern town of Khan Younis.
Wednesday, Palestinian medical officials said two Palestinian youths were killed by an Israeli attack in the Gaza Strip. The Israeli military said it was targeting militants who shot rockets into southern Israel.
Israel withdrew its troops and settlers from the Gaza Strip in 2005 after 38 years of occupation. But it controls Gaza's borders, air space and coastal waters, leaving the Palestinian territory dependent on the Jewish state for utilities and imports of humanitarian aid. - VOA News
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