LIVE | Day 5: Death toll crosses 3,600; Gaza power plant runs out of fuel
The Energy Ministry in Gaza has closed its sole power plant due to fuel depletion after Israel imposed a complete blockade.
After Israel imposed a blockade in retaliation for the attack by Hamas on Saturday (October 7), cutting off supplies, Gaza has shut down its only power plant as it has run out of fuel, the Energy Ministry said on Wednesday (October 11).
That will leave only generators to power the territory.
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.
The total death count on both sides is mounting to more than 3,600.
The number of people who have died in Israel has crossed 1,200, while officials in Gaza have reported the deaths of 900 people so far. The Israeli army also said that it had recovered the bodies of about 1,500 Hamas militants inside the country. Thousands have been wounded on both sides.
Israeli warplanes and artillery hammered neighbourhood after neighbourhood in the Gaza Strip, reducing buildings to rubble and sending people scrambling to find safety.
Humanitarian groups pleaded for the creation of corridors that would allow them to deliver aid, saying hospitals were overwhelmed with wounded people and running out of supplies.
Israel has stopped the entry of food, fuel, and medicines into Gaza in response to Hamas' bloody incursion into Israel on Saturday (October 7). The sole remaining access from Egypt shut down on Tuesday (October 10) after airstrikes hit near the border crossing.
The war is expected to escalate. New exchanges of fire over Israeli's northern borders with militants in Lebanon and Syria on Tuesday (October 10) pointed to the risk of an expanded regional conflict.
In Israel and beyond, the families of more than 150 people kidnapped by Hamas and other militant groups feared for the lives of their loved ones. The armed wing of Hamas has warned it will kill one of the hostages every time Israel's military bombs civilian targets in Gaza without warning.
The Federal reports on the Israel-Hamas war
Former Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid has not yet confirmed his participation in the newly announced emergency cabinet, which includes Netanyahu and Gantz. However, the joint statement regarding the formation of the new war cabinet stated that a seat would be "reserved" for Lapid if he chose to join.
Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly confirmed that three Canadians lost their lives in Israel over the weekend, with three others still missing. During a press conference, Joly revealed that over 4,700 Canadian citizens and permanent residents in Israel, Gaza, and the West Bank have registered with the government.
Health authorities in Ashkelon confirmed that a hospital was struck, but fortunately, there were no casualties. A spokesperson for the Barzilai hospital in Ashkelon stated that the child development center was directly hit by a projectile from Gaza. In related news, Hamas claimed responsibility for firing a rocket at Ben Gurion airport; however, Israeli officials stated that no damage was done.
A top opposition Israeli politician says he has reached an agreement to enter a wartime unity government with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Benny Gantz, a former defence minister and military chief of staff, released what he said was a joint statement with Netanyahu.
The statement said they would form a five-member “war-management” Cabinet. It will consist of Netanyahu, Gantz, current Defence Minister Yoav Gallant and two other top officials serving as “observer” members.
It said the government would not pass any legislation or decisions that are not connected to the war as long as the fighting continues. It was not immediately clear what would happen to Netanyahu's existing government partners, a collection of far-right and ultra-Orthodox parties.
Egypt has engaged in discussions with the United States and other nations to deliver humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip through its border, amid a limited ceasefire. Anonymous Egyptian security sources told Reuters that the aid would be routed via the Rafah border crossing, connecting Gaza and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula.
Authorities in Gaza warn of a looming humanitarian crisis as the power plant faces a complete shutdown due to fuel depletion.
According to the Palestine health ministry, a total of 1,055 people including 260 children and 230 women, have been killed and 5,184 wounded in the Gaza Strip since Saturday.
According to a BBC report, 17 British nationals are dead or missing in Israel. There are children among them.
There are 20 Thai nationals feared dead, 13 injured and 14 kidnapped, the country's Foreign Affairs Ministry said Wednesday during a news briefing, citing reports from workers and their employers.
About 30,000 Thais have been working as low wage labourers in Israel, especially engaged in farm work. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Kanchana Patarachoke says 5,019 have registered so far to be evacuated back to their homeland.
Palestinians in the sealed-off Gaza Strip scrambled to find safety Wednesday, as Israel hammered neighbourhood after neighbourhood in the tiny coastal enclave in retaliation for the deadly mass incursion by by Hamas militants and vowed an even more punishing escalation.
Airstrikes smashed entire city blocks to rubble, leaving unknown numbers of bodies beneath mounds of debris, and continued even as Hamas militants hold dozens of captives seized during their shocking attack into Israel over the weekend.
As Palestinians crowded into UN schools and a shrinking number of safe neighbourhoods, humanitarian groups pleaded for the creation of corridors to get aid into Gaza, warning that hospitals overwhelmed with wounded people were running out of supplies.
“There is no safe place in Gaza right now,” journalist Hasan Jabar said after three Palestinian journalists were killed in the bombardment of a downtown neighbourhood home to government ministries, media offices and hotels. “I am genuinely afraid for my life.” Israel has stopped entry of food, fuel and medicine into Gaza, and the sole remaining access from Egypt was shut down Tuesday after airstrikes hit near the border crossing.