The Gaza Strip Faces Major Communication and Internet Services Blackout
The Gaza Strip is facing yet another major communication and internet services blackout, according to Palestinian telecom company Paltel, amid an ongoing Israeli offensive in the besieged territory.
Complete Cut Off of Communication and Internet Services
Communication and internet services have been completely cut off in the Gaza Strip again early Wednesday, the Palestinian telecom company Paltel said.
Reasons for the Blackout
“We regret to announce a complete interruption of all communications and internet services with the Gaza Strip due to the international routes that were previously reconnected being cut off again,” it said in a brief statement on X.
“Dear people in our beloved homeland, we regret to announce a complete interruption of all communications and Internet services with the Gaza Strip, due to international routes that were previously reconnected being cut off again. May God protect you and protect our country,” the West Bank-based company said in a different social media post.
Paltel – The Last Major Telecoms Company Offering Services
Paltel was the last major telecoms company still offering services in the Palestinian territory.
Previous Internet and Communication Blackout
There had already been a nearly complete blackout of internet and communication connections within the sealed-off Gaza Strip over the weekend.
On Saturday, connections to the outside were only possible with phones using Israeli SIM cards from high buildings in the south of the Gaza Strip, or with satellite mobile phones.
Heavy bombardment by the Israeli army was blamed by Paltel for the blackout.
Gradual Restoration of Services
By Sunday, the company announced that telecommunication and internet services had been gradually restored in Gaza.
Confirmation of Internet Outage
Netblocks, an international internet connectivity monitor, confirmed the fresh internet outage in the Gaza Strip.
“Confirmed: Live metrics show that the Gaza Strip is in the midst of a new internet blackout with high impact to the last remaining major operator, Paltel; the incident will be experienced as a total loss of telecommunications by most residents,” Netblocks said on X.