Gaza Loses Electricity as Its Sole Power Plant Runs Out of Fuel, Cut Off from Israeli Grid

The Gaza strip, cut off from Israel's power grid, lost electrical service on Wednesday when the territory’s sole power plant ran out of fuel, reports said.

The Al Jazeera Mubasher, news channel, citing the head of the Gaza Energy Authority, said the lights went out at 2 p.m. local time.

Israel cut off its supply of electricity to Gaza on Monday, as it declared a "total siege" following Hamas’ devastating assault on Israeli towns, military bases and a music festival over the weekend. Supplies of food, fuel, and drinking water also were stopped.

Earlier on Wednesday, Thafer Melhem, head of the Palestinian Energy Authority, told Voice of Palestine radio that the territory’s only source of electricity was fast running out of fuel.

The anticipated power outage likely will cut Gaza off from the internet, and impact hospitals and other key services. 

Residents and institutions will now rely on individual generators for power--as long as fuel stores last.

The director of Gaza’s Shifa hospital told reporters his facility had four days of fuel remaining for its generator. 

“Israel's defense minister said that ‘no electricity, no food, no water, no fuel’ would be allowed into Gaza even though international humanitarian law requires allowing unimpeded passage of impartially distributed humanitarian aid,” Kenneth Roth, the former executive director of Human Rights Watch, said on X, the former Twitter. 

About 80% of Gaza’s 2.3 million relied on humanitarian aid before the latest war began.

Tuesday night, Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, also expressed concerns for Gaza’s health facilities. 

"Water is not being provided to Gaza. There's no electricity, it's not being provided,” he said. "We don't know about the condition of hospitals, are they able to function?"