Palestinian officials say house fire in Gaza Strip kills 21

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — A fire set off by stored gasoline in a residential building killed 21 people in a refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip, the territory’s Hamas rulers said. The fire was one of the deadliest incidents in recent years outside the violence stemming from the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The blaze erupted on the third floor of a three-story building in the crowded Jabaliya camp. No one inside the house survived. It was not immediately clear how the gasoline ignited. Flames were seen spewing out of the windows of the burning floor as people gathered outside on the street. Gaza is under a crippling Israeli-Egyptian blockade and faces a severe energy crisis. People often store cooking gas, diesel and gasoline in homes before winter.