Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced this Monday the imposition of a “total siege” on the Gaza Strip, on the third day of the offensive launched against Israel from Palestinian territory by the Hamas movement.
“We are imposing a total siege on Gaza,” Gallant said in a videotaped message released by the Israeli Defense Ministry.
“There is no electricity, there is no water, there is no gas,” added the Israeli Defense Minister.
Around 2.3 million Palestinians live in the Gaza Strip, a densely populated and poverty-stricken territory that has been under Israeli blockade since 2007.
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, there are currently 123,000 people displaced in Gaza due to the war that began on Saturday.
Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israeli territory on Saturday (Operation al-Aqsa Storm), with the launch of thousands of rockets and the incursion of militias.
In response to the Hamas attack, Israel bombed the Gaza Strip and took up positions in the south of the territory.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that Israel is “at war” with Hamas.
Source: TSF
