Gaza's sole power plant out of fuel, shuts down

GAZA CITY, Oct 11 (Agencies): The only power plant in the Gaza Strip, which is under Israeli bombardment and siege, shut down Wednesday after it ran out of fuel, said the Palestinian enclave's electricity authority.

"The only power plant in the Gaza Strip stopped functioning at 2:00 pm (1100 GMT)," the authority's head Jalal Ismail said in a statement, having earlier warned that it was running short of fuel.

Israel has imposed a "complete siege" on the Gaza Strip as it continues to bomb Hamas targets after the group's fighters launched a brutal assault on Israel on Saturday morning.

Israel is reeling under a brutal assault carried out by Hamas militants that killed more than 1,200 people in Israel.

News from Jerusalem adds: As Israel kept bombing Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a political rival announced an emergency government for the duration of the conflict.

The veteran right-wing leader was joined by the centrist Benny Gantz, a former defence minister, in the government and war cabinet as both put aside bitter political divisions that have roiled the country and sparked mass protests.

Their joint announcement came after Israeli soldiers sweeping battle-torn southern towns said they had found 1,200 victims five days after the Islamist militants' onslaught, the worst attack in Israel's 75-year history.

More than 260,000 Gaza residents have been forced from their homes, a UN aid agency said, while the European Union called for a "humanitarian corridor" to allow civilians to flee the enclave's fifth war in 15 years.

Fierce fighting has left thousands dead on both sides since Hamas launched a surprise assault on Saturday, spurring Israel's reprisal bombing campaign.