Jerusalem — Israel has halted all electricity supplies to Gaza, escalating pressure on Hamas to release the remaining Israeli hostages held in the enclave.
The decision, announced by Energy Minister Eli Cohen on Sunday, follows an earlier move to cut off all aid to the territory, home to more than two million people.
“I have just signed the order to stop supplying electricity immediately to the Gaza Strip,” Cohen said in a video statement. “We will use all the tools at our disposal to bring back the hostages and ensure that Hamas is no longer in Gaza the day after the war.”
The move is expected to severely impact Gaza’s already devastated infrastructure, particularly its desalination plants that are crucial for providing clean drinking water.
Israel has not ruled out cutting off water supplies as well, raising concerns among humanitarian organizations about the potential for a deepening crisis.
The United Nations human rights office warned on Friday that blocking essential supplies to Gaza could amount to collective punishment, a violation of international law.
Despite this, Israeli officials maintain that the measures are necessary to force Hamas to comply with demands for the release of hostages.
Hamas is believed to be holding 24 Israeli hostages alive, along with the bodies of 35 others. The group has warned that cutting off supplies to Gaza could endanger the hostages.
On Sunday, Hamas concluded the latest round of ceasefire talks with Egyptian mediators without agreeing to any changes to its position.
The militant group called for an immediate start to the second phase of the ceasefire, which would include the release of the remaining hostages, the withdrawal of Israeli forces, and a permanent end to the conflict.
Israel, however, is pushing for an extension of the first phase of the ceasefire. Talks to prolong the truce are set to resume in Qatar on Monday. The ongoing conflict has inflicted significant damage on Gaza’s coastal territory, with much of its infrastructure in ruins.
The Hamas-run Health Ministry reported that more than 48,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have been killed in Israeli strikes since the war began. However, the ministry did not disclose how many of the dead were militants.
The roots of the current crisis trace back to an October 2023 attack by Hamas, which killed approximately 1,200 people, mostly civilians, inside Israel and led to the capture of 251 hostages. Many of those hostages have since been released through ceasefire agreements or other arrangements.
Hamas has reiterated its support for the creation of an independent committee of technocrats to govern Gaza under the umbrella of the Palestinian Authority (PA) until new elections can be held. However, Israel has rejected the idea of any PA involvement in Gaza, without proposing an alternative plan for post-war governance.
As the humanitarian situation in Gaza continues to deteriorate, the international community has intensified calls for a resolution to the conflict and for the protection of civilians caught in the crossfire.