Editor’s Note: This article was written by the author on November 16. The internet shutdown made it impossible for him to send it to The Palestine Chronicle on that day.
We decided to publish it to give our readers a glimpse of what happened during the latest communications blackdown in the besieged Gaza Strip, due to the depletion of fuel allocated to operate the devices of the Palestinian Telecommunications Company.
The Gaza Strip’s Government Media Office announced on Thursday, November 16, that internet service was cut off from Gaza residents, due to the depletion of fuel allocated to operate the devices of the Palestinian Telecommunications Company.
The Office emphasized that the internet shutdown would lead to catastrophic conditions in Gaza, hindering the access of ambulances and civil defense vehicles to bombed sites and preventing communication between citizens and all government service institutions.
A warning was issued about Israel’s intention to commit major massacres following the internet shutdown. Indeed, the previous shutdown was followed by the killing of hundreds in less than two days.
Israel Wants to Hide Its Crimes from the World
Tareq Abu Amouna expressed his concerns to The Palestine Chronicle, saying “All the residents of Gaza are afraid of the internet shutdown, thinking that it will be followed by major massacres like those committed by the occupation during the previous internet shutdown two weeks ago.”
Abu Amouna called on the international community to urgently intervene to stop the Israeli war, calling on the free people of the world to increase their efforts to prevent the internet shutdown, so that the Israeli crimes will be visible to the whole world.
Ahmed Al-Eissawi, a young resident of Gaza, seconded the fears, saying, “There is no justification for the occupation to shut down the internet. The residents of Gaza, who have charge in their mobile phones, use the internet to communicate and guide ambulances and civil defense to bombed sites.”
“Since the beginning of the war, I have been preventing my children from going out into the street for fear of bombing, knowing that my house, like the houses of all Gaza residents, is not safe. Israeli bombing is everywhere,” he added.
Dozens of Crimes, Hundreds of Casualties
Mohammed Ghanem, a resident of Gaza, said that his neighborhood came under heavy attack during the first shutdown, resulting in dozens of victims and wounded.
“The occupation bombed the house of our neighbors from the Haj family. It resulted in the destruction of several houses. Dozens of families from the Haj and Hawajri families and many displaced people in the area were killed and injured.”
“We could not contact ambulances or civil defense teams. Their prolonged arrival resulted in the delay of the actual rescue operations for the injured and recovery of martyrs, leading to the eventual martyrdom of many wounded,” he continued,
Ghanem condemned the crimes of the occupation, calling on the international community, human rights institutions, and all Arab and Islamic countries to pressure the occupation forces and stop the ongoing Israeli war on the Gaza Strip.
(The Palestine Chronicle)
– Abdallah Aljamal is a Gaza-based journalist. He is a contributor for The Palestine Chronicle from the Gaza Strip. His email is abdallahaljamal1987@gmail.com
