2023 Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip



On 9 October 2023, Israel intensified the blockade of the Gaza Strip after the 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel and the ensuing Israel–Hamas war. Israel's Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced a "total blockade", blocking the entry of food, water, medicine, fuel and electricity. Egypt who controls Rafah Border Crossing has supported the blockade by not allowing Palestinians to enter Egypt.

Israel stated that the blockade would not be lifted until the hostages abducted by Hamas are returned, which has been criticized as collective punishment and an apparent war crime. While Hamas stated that it would release all Israeli hostages in exchange for the release of all Palestinian prisoners by Israel. Later, Gallant changed his position of a complete blockade. The first supplies entered on 21 October 2023. The blockade exacerbated Gaza's humanitarian crisis.

In January 2024, Israeli authorities blocked 56% of humanitarian aid to northern Gaza. On 9 February 2024, UNRWA's director Philippe Lazzarini said that Israel had blocked food for 1.1 million Palestinians in Gaza.

The blockade has contributed to imminent famine conditions in the Gaza Strip, which was exacberated by Israeli airstrikes targeting food infrastructure and restrictions on humanitarian aid. In a number of incidents, Israeli protesters, including settlers, blocked aid trucks carrying humanitarian aid heading towards the Gaza Strip, and in some cases attacked them.

Background
The Gaza Strip has been under a blockade by both Israel and Egypt since 2005. Several border crossings have existed from the Gaza Strip along the border of Israel and Egypt. Israel regularly granted permission for a quota of Gaza Palestinians, numbering between 15,000 and 21,000, to work daily within its borders.

On 7 October 2023, militants led by Hamas, a Palestinian political and military organization and other Palestinian groups, launched its biggest assault across the Gaza–Israel barrier into southern Israel, as well as firing rockets into Israel. Israel subsequently declared war on the militants, calling up 300,000 reservists to execute Israel's military operation. Following the attack, considered the worst attack on Jews since the Holocaust,

Blockade
A total blockade of the Gaza Strip was announced on 9 October 2023 by the Defence Minister of Israel, Yoav Gallant. "We are putting a complete siege on Gaza … No electricity, no food, no water, no gas – it’s all closed" he announced. "We are fighting human animals and we are acting accordingly," he added. The spokesman for the Minister of Energy of Israel, Israel Katz, said that Katz had ordered the water supply to the Gaza Strip to be cut, effective immediately. Israeli tanks and drones have been tasked with guarding openings in the Gaza–Israel border fence and enforcing the blockade.

As a result of the blockade, the only power plant in the Gaza Strip ran out of fuel on 11 October, at 2:00 pm. This caused the electricity in the Gaza Strip to go off. Due to this, desalination plants providing water shut off, completely stopping running water.

On 12 October 2023, Israeli Minister of Energy and Infrastructure, Israel Katz, stated that the lifting of the Gaza Strip blockade would not occur until the hostages, who were abducted by Hamas, are safely returned to their homeland.

The Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital was forced to shut down, despite being Gaza's only cancer hospital, after running out of fuel.

After receiving pressure from U.S. President Joe Biden, Gallant changed his position of a complete blockade and a deal was made on 19 October for Israel and Egypt to allow aid into Gaza.

In January 2024, Israeli authorities blocked 56% of humanitarian aid to northern Gaza.

On 31 January 2024, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir called on Netanyahu to cease sending aid to Gaza.

On 1 February, protests blocked aid trucks from leaving the Port of Ashdod.

On 9 February 2024, UNRWA's director Philippe Lazzarini said that Israel had blocked food for 1.1 million Palestinians in Gaza.

Rafah crossing
Most aid vehicles come through this crossing from Egypt. This was the first crossing to reopen after the start of the war, on 21 October. Between then and 31 October, 241 aid trucks passed through. Egypt, fearing a great influx of Gazans into Sinai implemented strict policies in Rafah crossing. On 27 October, Cindy McCain, director of the World Food Program, criticized the checks at the Egyptian side of the crossing as "overly stringent" and limiting the flow of aid, which had previously been closer to 500 trucks a day. However Egypt is highly cautious of mass exodus of Palestinians from Gaza.

Kerem Shalom crossing
This was one of the crossings breached at the start of the war, and remained closed thereafter. On 30 October, the UN asked Israel to reopen it to allow additional aid trucks through. On 3 November it was opened briefly, and Palestinian workers from the Gaza Strip who had been staying in Israel on work permits were sent back to the Gaza Strip.

On 21 December 2023, Israeli protesters attempted to block the Kerem Shalom crossing to prevent humanitarian aid from entering the Gaza Strip. On 6 February, Channel 12 reported that 132 aid trucks had been prevented from entering the Kerem Shalom border crossing. On 7 February, Israelis set up tents at the Kerem Shalom to block aid from entering Gaza.

Other crossings
As of 1 November, other crossings into Israel have remained closed.

On 2 February, Israeli protesters blocked the Nitzana Border Crossing between Egypt and Israel to prevent humanitarian aid from entering Gaza.

Two Jordanian aid convoys headed towards the Gaza Strip carrying medical supplies and flour were attacked by Israeli settlers on 1 May.

Consequences of blockade
The blockade resulted in a 90% drop in electricity availability, impacting hospital power supplies, sewage plants, and shutting down desalination plants that provide drinking water. According to WHO, 27 out of 35 hospitals in the Gaza Strip were shut down by 23 November 2023.

On 15 November, the UNRWA announced that due to the lack of fuel, 70% of Gaza would no longer have access to clean water. On 17 November, Oxfam stated Gaza's water supply was at 17% of its pre-siege capacity. According to Oxfam and the United Nations, Gaza's lack of clean water and sanitation would trigger a rise in cholera and other deadly infectious diseases. On 7 December, the World Health Organization reported increases in acute respiratory infections, scabies, jaundice, and diarrhea.

On 7 December 2023, the World Food Programme stated that 97% of households had inadequate food consumption and 83% in southern Gaza were surviving through "extreme consumption strategies." On 15 December, the United Nations estimated nine out of ten residents were not eating food every day. On 22 December, UNICEF warned of the increasingly growing threat of famine in the Gaza Strip.

Direct attacks on telecommunications infrastructure by Israel, electricity blockades and fuel shortages have caused the near-total collapse of Gaza's largest cell network providers. Lack of internet access has obstructed Gazan citizens from communicating with loved ones, learning of IDF operations, and identifying both the areas most exposed to bombing and possible escape routes. The blackouts have also impeded emergency services, making it more difficult to locate and access the time-critical injured, and have impeded humanitarian aid agencies and journalists as well. By December 2023 200,000 Gazans (approximately 10% of the population) had received internet access through an eSIM provided by Connecting Humanity.

Famine
The Israel-Hamas War has led to imminent famine conditions in the Gaza Strip, resulting from Israeli airstrikes and the ongoing blockade of the Gaza Strip by Israel, which includes restrictions on humanitarian aid. 2.2 million people in Gaza are now experiencing food insecurity at emergency level.

Airstrikes have destroyed food infrastructure, such as bakeries, mills, and food stores, and there is a widespread scarcity of essential supplies due to the blockade of aid. This has caused starvation for more than half a million Gazans and is part of a broader humanitarian crisis in the Strip. It is the “highest number of people facing catastrophic hunger” ever recorded on the IPC scale, and is widely expected to be the most intense man-made famine since the Second World War.

The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) has recently classified the current situation in Gaza as the highest level of food insecurity ever recorded. With 53% of the population, equivalent to 1.17 million individuals, facing emergency levels, the region is experiencing alarming rates of malnutrition and loss of lives; Due to the prevailing security conditions, providing a substantial humanitarian response has become exceedingly challenging. It is crucially important to establish a consistent and unhindered flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza to address the urgent needs of its population.

Reactions
According to Agam Institute surveys, nearly 60% of Israeli Jews opposed sending humanitarian aid to Gaza. According to a survey by Israeli Channel 12 television, 72% of Israelis opposed sending humanitarian aid to Gaza without the return of Israeli hostages held by Hamas.

Volker Türk, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, said that Israel's siege of the Gaza Strip violates international law because it endangers the lives of civilians by depriving them of goods essential for their survival.

UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese expressed concern that "the measures taken, including the bombing of the Rafah crossing, hints to an intention to really starve and kill the people who are innocent inside the Gaza Strip," saying there was fear among Palestinians in Gaza of a "second Nakba."

UN Secretary-General António Guterres said he was "deeply distressed" by Israel's decision to impose a total blockade on the Gaza Strip.

Jan Egeland, the Secretary General for the Norwegian Refugee Council, stated that "collective punishment is in violation of international law. If and when it would lead to wounded children dying in hospitals because of a lack of energy, electricity and supplies, it could amount to war crime."

On 10 October 2023, European Union's High Representative for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell said that "cutting water, cutting electricity, cutting food to a mass of civilian people, is against international law."

On 11 October 2023, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said that Israel's blockade and bombing of Gaza in retaliation for Hamas' attack was a disproportionate response amounting to a "massacre."

UNRWA's director, Philippe Lazzarini, described the Gaza Strip as a "graveyard of a population trapped between war, siege and deprivation", saying that "We will not be able to say we did not know. History will ask why the world did not have the courage to act decisively and stop this hell on Earth."

Egyptian authorities tried to prevent a mass exodus of Palestinian refugees from the Gaza Strip towards the Sinai Peninsula, rejecting a United States proposal for safe corridors to Egypt for Palestinians fleeing the Gaza Strip. The Rafah Border Crossing on the Egypt–Gaza border was closed by Egypt after the start of the conflict. Egypt urged Israel to allow safe passage for Palestinian civilians from the Gaza Strip instead of forcing them to flee towards Sinai. Fabrizio Carboni, the International Committee of the Red Cross's (ICRC) director for the Middle East, said that "Without electricity, hospitals [in Gaza] risk turning into morgues."

According to Human Rights Watch, "Israel's Minister of Energy and Infrastructure has made it clear the recent Hamas attacks are 'why we decided to stop the flow of water, electricity and fuel'. These tactics are war crimes, as is using starvation as a weapon of war." A spokesperson for Gisha, an Israeli human rights group, said there was no "justification for this kind of targeting of civilians".

British politician and Leader of the Labour Party, Keir Starmer, announced his support for Israel's "right" to totally cut power and water supplies to the Gaza Strip in an interview with LBC, prompting the Labour Muslim Network to describe his comments as endorsing "collective punishment" and demand an apology from him. The Mayor of London Sadiq Khan urged Israel to exercise restraint, arguing that a blockade of the Gaza Strip could lead to suffering of Palestinian civilians.

On 13 October, the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the Israeli siege and the displacement of the population of the Gaza Strip.

Agnès Callamard, secretary of Amnesty International said that Israeli authorities should immediately stop the increased restrictions, including cutting off electricity, water, and food. She stated that the blackout would have a severe effect on access to clean water, communications and internet access, and public health.



On 18 October, the United States vetoed a UN Security Council resolution, sponsored by Brazil and supported by 12 of the 15 Council members, calling for "humanitarian pauses" to deliver aid to Gazan civilians. The US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield explained that the US was working on a diplomatic resolution to the humanitarian crisis, and the resolution failed to recognize Israel's right to self-defense.

On 21 October, the Israeli army dropped leaflets in Gaza with the message: "Urgent warning! To the residents of Gaza: your presence to the North of Wadi Gaza is putting your lives at risk. Anyone who chooses not to evacuate from the North of the Gaza Strip to the South of the Gaza Strip may be identified as a partner in a terrorist organization."

On 22 October, Cindy McCain warned that "these people are going to starve to death unless [the World Food Programme] can get in."

On 18 December, Human Rights Watch accused Israel of "using starvation of civilians as a method of warfare in the occupied Gaza Strip". On 7 January 2024, the UNRWA deputy director reported severe hunger and an almost collapsed healthcare system.

On 9 January, British Foreign Secretary David Cameron admitted he is "worried" that Israel has "taken action that might be in breach of international law", saying he wanted Israel to restore water supplies to Gaza.