Israel ordered on Friday October 13 the evacuation to the south of “all civilians” from Gaza City, a measure condemned by the UN and rejected by Hamas, on the seventh day of the war between Hamas and Israel. More than 423,000 Palestinians have had to leave their homes to flee the bombings, according to the UN. The situation in the Palestinian territory continues to worsen, as evidenced by the numerous documents freely available on social networks.
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The satellite images speak for themselves. Since the start of the week, the small Palestinian territory has been gradually plunging into darkness. This is visible from space thanks to NASA images. The phenomenon can be explained by the destruction, for example that of electrical lines, but also and above all, by the shutdown of the thermal power plant which helped to power the city. On October 11, local authorities claimed that “ due to lack of fuel, the factory had stopped operating “. On October 13, after cross-checking, the power station seemed to have been spared from the bombings.
To fully understand how the Gaza Strip is supplied, it should be noted that “ Gaza’s electricity supply comes from two sources: the first being the Israeli Electric Company, which supplies 120 megawatts of electricity to the Gaza Strip, the second being the Gaza Power Plant, including transformers and reservoirs fuel tanks have been repeatedly bombed by Israel since 2006 and whose capacity has been reduced from 140 MW to 70 MW », assures the Palestinian NGO Al Mezan, cited by the humanitarian information service of OCHA of the United Nations. (Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs).
A few hours after the Hamas attacks against Israel, Israeli Energy Minister Israel Katz declared: “ that no electricity or water would be supplied to Gaza until those kidnapped during the assault by the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas returned home » […] “ Humanitarian aid in Gaza ? No electrical switches will be turned on, no water pumps will be turned on, and no fuel trucks will enter until the kidnapped Israelis return home », he posted on his X account (formerly Twitter).
Hospitals in great difficulty
The UN humanitarian affairs office, Ocha, then specified that the power cuts would affect hospitals in Gaza, which will have to rely solely on their auxiliary generators. According to Ocha, some medical facilities do not have enough gasoline to last more than four days. Speaking to the BBC, the director of the Palestinian al Shifa hospital, Doctor Muhammad Abu Salmia, said he had to suspend operations. He estimates the number of patients in intensive care and neonatal units at 120, and emphasizes that from now on the hospital will no longer be able to care for the sick or injured. The WHO indicates this Friday, October 13 that the health system in Gaza is “ at a breaking point » and specifies that six of the seven main hospitals in Gaza are only partially functioning.
In Gaza, the population is used to power cuts, and the use of generators is regular, but the impossibility of supplying fuel through the Rafah Gate and other crossing points further complicates the situation. . “ This catastrophic situation creates a humanitarian crisis for all residents of the Gaza Strip “, indicated a press release published by the Gaza authorities on Wednesday.
The useless blackout tactic
From a military point of view, taking into account the satellite images that RFI was able to observe, one could wonder if the Hamas movement is not trying to impose a total blackout on Gaza in order to prevent Israeli bombings at night. A military expert, consulted by RFI, does not believe it. “ In 2023, turning off the light on the ground absolutely does not protect you from an air raid. The Israelis have a night sighting system, and already use JDAM bombs guided by GPS allowing them to strike at night, through smoke or clouds. They have very detailed digital maps of the city, and have no trouble spotting their target from the sky. When the Israeli army enters the Gaza Strip on the ground, advancing through a dark night without any lighting could even give it a certain advantage, because it is better equipped than Hamas in detection and detection equipment. night vision “.
Residents try to survive
In this extremely degraded context in Gaza, residents are trying to protect themselves. They first stocked up on drinking water and filled their freezers when possible. But even frozen products are disappearing due to the inability of supermarkets to operate due to power cuts. In some relatively untouched neighborhoods, residents cling to their cell phones.
The only link with the outside world, they allow us to get news, or to give it, or even to bear witness by posting videos on social networks when possible. Without being considered a vital need, the use of mobile phones in times of crisis is an important element which allows civilian populations to have access to information, to raise the alert in the face of dangerous situations, or to get in touch with emergency services, state or humanitarian agencies.
In Gaza, according to our observations, recharging can be done via modified car batteries, or solar panels, this is clearly a priority for civilians in extremely anxiety-provoking situations.
Read alsoIsrael-Hamas war: in the Gaza Strip, “everyone waits their turn” says a resident
The Israeli army has understood the importance of mobile telephony and manages to send SMS messages to Gazans urging them to leave the area. This Friday, October 13, in a more classic way, she also dropped leaflets on Gaza asking residents to flee “ immediately » towards the south of the Palestinian territory. The reactions were not long in coming.
Many Gaza residents do not know where to go, or even how to reach the south, because transport is non-existent and the roads dangerous. The evacuation order is “ a forced transfer » and constitutes “ a crime beyond comprehension “, for his part castigated the boss of the Arab League, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, in a letter addressed to the head of the UN, Antonio Guterres. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas also rejected “ totally the move » of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, not hesitating to speak of “ second Nakba » (“ Disaster », in Arabic), in reference to the flight of some 760,000 Palestinians in 1948, upon the creation of the State of Israel.
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