Starlink will support connectivity to internationally recognised aid organisations in Gaza, Tesla chief Elon Musk said today.
He was responding to US leader Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, popularly known as AOC, who asked how could anyone defend "such an act" after communications and the internet in the Gaza Strip were snapped last night.
"Cutting off all communication to a population of 2.2 million is unacceptable. Journalists, medical professionals, humanitarian efforts, and innocents are all endangered," AOC said in a post on X. "I do not know how such an act can be defended. The United States has historically denounced this practice."
Responding to her, Mr Musk said, "Starlink will support connectivity to internationally recognized aid organizations in Gaza."
Starlink will support connectivity to internationally recognized aid organizations in Gaza.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 28, 2023
[ComStar]
Starlink is a satellite network developed by Mr Musk's space flight company SpaceX to provide low-cost internet to remote locations. A Starlink satellite has a lifespan of approximately five years and SpaceX eventually hopes to have as many as 42,000 satellites in this so-called megaconstellation.
Internet access and the phone network were completely cut across the Gaza Strip on Friday, amid intense Israeli bombardment of the Palestinian territory. Hamas accused Israel of taking the measure "to perpetrate massacres with bloody retaliatory strikes from the air, land and sea."
The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said the "disruption affects the central emergency number 101 and hinders the arrival of ambulance vehicles to the wounded" in the ongoing strikes.
The organisation said it was "deeply concerned" about its medics' ability to continue providing care, as well as staff safety.
"We have completely lost contact with the operations room in the Gaza Strip and all our teams operating there," it said on X, formerly Twitter.
The communications shutdown was confirmed by Palestinian telecoms provider Jawwal. "The heavy bombardment in the last hour destroyed all remaining international routes connecting Gaza to the outside world," Jawwal wrote on its Facebook page.
Global internet monitor NetBlocks reported "a collapse in connectivity in the Gaza Strip with high impact to Paltel," Jawwal's owner, citing live network data.
"The company is the last remaining major operator to supply service as connectivity declines amid ongoing fighting with Israel," NetBlocks wrote on X.
With inputs from AFP
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