Israel’s government has warned that it will not restore water and electricity to Gaza while it still holds Israeli hostages captured during the recent terror attack. Israel’s energy minister, Israel Katz, made it clear that humanitarian aid would be provided to Gaza once it showed concern for human welfare by releasing the hostages held by the terrorist group Hamas. He emphasized that the siege would continue until all Israeli hostages were returned.
The recent attack saw numerous abductions and thousands of rockets launched at southern Israel. Israel has demanded the return of approximately 150 hostages taken during the attack, and this issue has complicated the provision of humanitarian aid to Gaza.
Critics, including some independent United Nations experts, have accused Israel of collective punishment, which they argue indiscriminately affects civilians in Gaza and constitutes a war crime. The group of experts also called for the immediate release of the civilian hostages.
While Israel is reportedly receiving some assistance from the United States in retrieving the hostages, the nature of this support beyond “advice and assistance” remains unclear. The U.S. has deployed 2,400 Marines to the region, but it is not yet confirmed whether their deployment is related to the Israeli hostage situation.