An image grab from an AFP TV footage shows balls of fire rising above Gaza City during an Israeli assault on October 27, 2023.
'Massacres Will Be Done in Total Darkness': Huge Israeli Assault Amid Blackout in Gaza
"The intense bombing in the last hour caused the destruction of all remaining international routes linking Gaza to the outside world," said a Palestinian telecommunications company.
People reportedly lost all access to internet and communication services across the Gaza Strip on Friday night as Israel announced an expansion of its ground attack and launched what observers described as the largest aerial assault since its latest bombing campaign began nearly three weeks ago.
Al Jazeera reported that it has only "sporadic communication" with its correspondents on the ground in the besieged Gaza Strip. The outlet has been able to go live intermittently via satellite phones.
Reporting from Khan Younis, a city in southern Gaza, Al Jazeera's Tareq Abu Azzoum said that "we don't know anything that is happening in other districts in the territory."
"We are now in a hospital and we are going to be live by satellite as much as we can and every single hour," he continued. "So please, if you can hear us, send that message to the world that we are isolated now in Gaza. We don't have any phone signals. We don't have any internet connections."
The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said it has "completely lost contact with the operations room in Gaza Strip and all our teams operating there due to the Israeli authorities cutting off all landline, cellular, and internet communications."
"We are deeply concerned about the ability of our teams to continue providing their emergency medical services, especially since this disruption affects the central emergency number '101' and hinders the arrival of ambulance vehicles to the wounded and injured," the group said. "We are also worried about the safety of our teams working in Gaza Strip as the continuous and intense Israeli airstrikes around the clock indicate that the Israeli authorities will continue to commit war crimes while isolating Gaza from the outside world."
Like Al Jazeera and other outlets, The Associated Press reported trouble contacting people in the Gaza Strip.
"The Associated Press' attempts to reach people in Gaza did not go through," the outlet said Friday.
"We are likely to soon find out about the biggest massacres we've seen yet."
Friday's onslaught came at the tail end of a particularly deadly week in Gaza, where Israeli airstrikes have killed more than 7,000 people in just three weeks. Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesman Daniel Hagari announced Friday that in addition to ramping up its airstrikes, the Israeli military is "expanding ground operations" in Gaza ahead of an expected full-scale invasion.
Israel has also largely kept up its illegal blockade of the Gaza Strip, depriving the territory of critical necessities—including fuel and electricity—and intensifying the enclave's humanitarian crisis.
Israel's airstrikes have severely damaged Gaza's internet and telecommunications infrastructure, hampering people's ability to communicate with their families and undermining journalists' efforts to inform the world about events on the ground.
On Friday, the Palestinian telecommunications company Paltel announced "a complete disruption of all communication and internet services" due to the Israeli bombardment.
"The intense bombing in the last hour caused the destruction of all remaining international routes linking Gaza to the outside world," the company said.
The London-based watchdog group NetBlocks wrote on social media that "live network data show a collapse in connectivity in the Gaza Strip with high impact to Paltel."
Amid the intense bombing and communications blackout on Friday, Medical Aid for Palestinians director of advocacy Rohan Talbot relayed a message that a colleague delivered just days earlier.
"I'm afraid that there will be massacres and those massacres will be done in total darkness," the unnamed colleague said, according to Talbot.
Palestinian-American political analyst Yousef Munayyer issued a similar warning on Friday.
"The Israeli military is carrying out its biggest strikes since the start of its war on Gaza right now, all the lights and communications are knocked out," he wrote on social media. "We are likely to soon find out about the biggest massacres we've seen yet."
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. In a few short weeks, US voters will have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. Our Fall Campaign is underway, and we need your help. To power our newsroom through the rest of the year, we need to raise $125,000 by midnight on October 31. So if you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
People reportedly lost all access to internet and communication services across the Gaza Strip on Friday night as Israel announced an expansion of its ground attack and launched what observers described as the largest aerial assault since its latest bombing campaign began nearly three weeks ago.
Al Jazeera reported that it has only "sporadic communication" with its correspondents on the ground in the besieged Gaza Strip. The outlet has been able to go live intermittently via satellite phones.
Reporting from Khan Younis, a city in southern Gaza, Al Jazeera's Tareq Abu Azzoum said that "we don't know anything that is happening in other districts in the territory."
"We are now in a hospital and we are going to be live by satellite as much as we can and every single hour," he continued. "So please, if you can hear us, send that message to the world that we are isolated now in Gaza. We don't have any phone signals. We don't have any internet connections."
The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said it has "completely lost contact with the operations room in Gaza Strip and all our teams operating there due to the Israeli authorities cutting off all landline, cellular, and internet communications."
"We are deeply concerned about the ability of our teams to continue providing their emergency medical services, especially since this disruption affects the central emergency number '101' and hinders the arrival of ambulance vehicles to the wounded and injured," the group said. "We are also worried about the safety of our teams working in Gaza Strip as the continuous and intense Israeli airstrikes around the clock indicate that the Israeli authorities will continue to commit war crimes while isolating Gaza from the outside world."
Like Al Jazeera and other outlets, The Associated Press reported trouble contacting people in the Gaza Strip.
"The Associated Press' attempts to reach people in Gaza did not go through," the outlet said Friday.
"We are likely to soon find out about the biggest massacres we've seen yet."
Friday's onslaught came at the tail end of a particularly deadly week in Gaza, where Israeli airstrikes have killed more than 7,000 people in just three weeks. Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesman Daniel Hagari announced Friday that in addition to ramping up its airstrikes, the Israeli military is "expanding ground operations" in Gaza ahead of an expected full-scale invasion.
Israel has also largely kept up its illegal blockade of the Gaza Strip, depriving the territory of critical necessities—including fuel and electricity—and intensifying the enclave's humanitarian crisis.
Israel's airstrikes have severely damaged Gaza's internet and telecommunications infrastructure, hampering people's ability to communicate with their families and undermining journalists' efforts to inform the world about events on the ground.
On Friday, the Palestinian telecommunications company Paltel announced "a complete disruption of all communication and internet services" due to the Israeli bombardment.
"The intense bombing in the last hour caused the destruction of all remaining international routes linking Gaza to the outside world," the company said.
The London-based watchdog group NetBlocks wrote on social media that "live network data show a collapse in connectivity in the Gaza Strip with high impact to Paltel."
Amid the intense bombing and communications blackout on Friday, Medical Aid for Palestinians director of advocacy Rohan Talbot relayed a message that a colleague delivered just days earlier.
"I'm afraid that there will be massacres and those massacres will be done in total darkness," the unnamed colleague said, according to Talbot.
Palestinian-American political analyst Yousef Munayyer issued a similar warning on Friday.
"The Israeli military is carrying out its biggest strikes since the start of its war on Gaza right now, all the lights and communications are knocked out," he wrote on social media. "We are likely to soon find out about the biggest massacres we've seen yet."
- With 7,300+ Gazans Dead, Israeli PM Adviser Says 'Tonight We Are Starting Payback' ›
- Opinion | Israel's Stranglehold on Media Coverage in Gaza Must End | Common Dreams ›
- Gaza Telecom Networks Face 'Complete Halt' as Another Blackout Nears ›
- Gaza Internet Blackout Conceals Israel's Human Rights Violations—And Is Itself One ›
People reportedly lost all access to internet and communication services across the Gaza Strip on Friday night as Israel announced an expansion of its ground attack and launched what observers described as the largest aerial assault since its latest bombing campaign began nearly three weeks ago.
Al Jazeera reported that it has only "sporadic communication" with its correspondents on the ground in the besieged Gaza Strip. The outlet has been able to go live intermittently via satellite phones.
Reporting from Khan Younis, a city in southern Gaza, Al Jazeera's Tareq Abu Azzoum said that "we don't know anything that is happening in other districts in the territory."
"We are now in a hospital and we are going to be live by satellite as much as we can and every single hour," he continued. "So please, if you can hear us, send that message to the world that we are isolated now in Gaza. We don't have any phone signals. We don't have any internet connections."
The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said it has "completely lost contact with the operations room in Gaza Strip and all our teams operating there due to the Israeli authorities cutting off all landline, cellular, and internet communications."
"We are deeply concerned about the ability of our teams to continue providing their emergency medical services, especially since this disruption affects the central emergency number '101' and hinders the arrival of ambulance vehicles to the wounded and injured," the group said. "We are also worried about the safety of our teams working in Gaza Strip as the continuous and intense Israeli airstrikes around the clock indicate that the Israeli authorities will continue to commit war crimes while isolating Gaza from the outside world."
Like Al Jazeera and other outlets, The Associated Press reported trouble contacting people in the Gaza Strip.
"The Associated Press' attempts to reach people in Gaza did not go through," the outlet said Friday.
"We are likely to soon find out about the biggest massacres we've seen yet."
Friday's onslaught came at the tail end of a particularly deadly week in Gaza, where Israeli airstrikes have killed more than 7,000 people in just three weeks. Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesman Daniel Hagari announced Friday that in addition to ramping up its airstrikes, the Israeli military is "expanding ground operations" in Gaza ahead of an expected full-scale invasion.
Israel has also largely kept up its illegal blockade of the Gaza Strip, depriving the territory of critical necessities—including fuel and electricity—and intensifying the enclave's humanitarian crisis.
Israel's airstrikes have severely damaged Gaza's internet and telecommunications infrastructure, hampering people's ability to communicate with their families and undermining journalists' efforts to inform the world about events on the ground.
On Friday, the Palestinian telecommunications company Paltel announced "a complete disruption of all communication and internet services" due to the Israeli bombardment.
"The intense bombing in the last hour caused the destruction of all remaining international routes linking Gaza to the outside world," the company said.
The London-based watchdog group NetBlocks wrote on social media that "live network data show a collapse in connectivity in the Gaza Strip with high impact to Paltel."
Amid the intense bombing and communications blackout on Friday, Medical Aid for Palestinians director of advocacy Rohan Talbot relayed a message that a colleague delivered just days earlier.
"I'm afraid that there will be massacres and those massacres will be done in total darkness," the unnamed colleague said, according to Talbot.
Palestinian-American political analyst Yousef Munayyer issued a similar warning on Friday.
"The Israeli military is carrying out its biggest strikes since the start of its war on Gaza right now, all the lights and communications are knocked out," he wrote on social media. "We are likely to soon find out about the biggest massacres we've seen yet."
- With 7,300+ Gazans Dead, Israeli PM Adviser Says 'Tonight We Are Starting Payback' ›
- Opinion | Israel's Stranglehold on Media Coverage in Gaza Must End | Common Dreams ›
- Gaza Telecom Networks Face 'Complete Halt' as Another Blackout Nears ›
- Gaza Internet Blackout Conceals Israel's Human Rights Violations—And Is Itself One ›