Two children were killed on Saturday when their western Gaza City house caught fire.

Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qodra said the two children – both 3 years old – were killed when a major fire erupted in their house.

He added that the father of one of the two children was also injured in the blaze.

The fire was caused by a candle that was used by house residents after an electricity outage in the area, according to civil defense spokesman Mohamed al-Medeyah.

The Gaza Strip has been suffering from an electricity crisis for about seven years now after Israel attacked its only functioning electricity generation station in mid-2006.

In January 2013, the six members of a family were killed when their Gaza City house caught fire as well.

The fire was caused by a candle the family used to get light after an electricity outage.

AA