Gaza faces 'humanitarian catastrophe' as only operational power plant runs out of fuel

The sole operational power plant in Gaza ceased operations at 2 p.m. local time on Wednesday due to the depletion of its fuel reserves, said the head of the Palestinian enclave’s energy authority.

The blackouts come as Israel has decided to block fuel shipments into the Gaza Strip as part of what the Israeli government has called a “complete siege” on the territory run by the Hamas militant group.

In response to attacks by the ruling militant group Hamas that resulted in the death of more than 1,000 civilians, Israel has imposed a comprehensive blockade on Gaza.

The Israeli government has announced its intention to halt the supply of fuel, food, and other essential items to the enclave in response to these hostilities.

Since Hamas assumed power in 2007 and Israel closed its border, Gaza has remained largely isolated from the outside world. The enclave has endured a series of retaliatory strikes from Israel since Saturday, resulting in the loss of 950 lives and injuries to over 5,000 individuals.

Palestinians in the sealed-off Gaza Strip struggled to find any safe area Wednesday, as Israeli strikes demolished entire neighbourhoods.

Airstrikes smashed entire city blocks to rubble in the tiny coastal enclave and left unknown numbers of bodies beneath mounds of debris. The bombardment raged on even though militants are holding an estimated 150 people snatched from Israel — soldiers, men, women, children and older adults.

Israel has vowed unprecedented retaliation against the Hamas militant group ruling the Palestinian territory after its fighters stormed through the border fence Saturday and gunned down hundreds of Israelis in their homes, on the streets and at an outdoor music festival. Since then, militants have continued to fire rockets at Israel, including a heavy barrage at the southern town of Ashkelon on Wednesday.

The war, which has already claimed at least 2,200 lives on both sides, is expected to escalate — and compound the misery of people living in Gaza, where basic necessities and electricity were already in short supply.

Israeli airstrikes late Tuesday struck the family house of Mohammed Deif, the shadowy leader of Hamas’ military wing, killing his father, brother and at least two other relatives in the southern town of Khan Younis, senior Hamas official Bassem Naim told The Associated Press.

Deif has never been seen in public and his whereabouts are unknown.

Exchanges of fire over Israel’s northern borders with militants in Lebanon and Syria, meanwhile, pointed to the risk of an expanded regional conflict.

U.S. President Joe Biden on Tuesday warned other countries and armed groups against entering the war. The U.S. is already rushing munitions and military equipment to Israel and has deployed a carrier strike group to the eastern Mediterranean as deterrence.

On Wednesday, the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah fired anti-tank missiles at an Israeli military position and claimed to have killed and wounded troops. The Israeli military confirmed the attack but did not comment on possible casualties. The Israeli army shelled the area in southern Lebanon where the attack was launched.

With inputs from AP.