Respectable organizations, including the United Kingdom, the United Nations, Oxfam, and Human Rights Watch have all stated that Israel is obstructing the delivery of humanitarian aid.

Several Israeli officials have denied these claims, suggesting that such accusations are rooted in antisemitism. However, as with most conflicts, independent third-party sources are often more reliable than the conflicting parties themselves. Additionally, the Israeli government has barred independent journalists from entering Gaza, limiting objective reporting from neutral observers.

Israel's unprecedented heavy bombing—dropping more bombs in eight months than during World War II or the eight-year-long Iraq War—has destroyed essential infrastructure for food preparation and distribution, including bakeries, grain mills, and civic centers.

The IDF frequently accuses Hamas of storing weapons within civilian infrastructure. However, this justification is problematic for two key reasons:

1. These claims often appear exaggerated—for instance, in the case of Al-Shifa Hospital.
2. Even if the allegations were entirely accurate, it remains ethically questionable to starve millions of civilians who had no involvement in the October 7 assault. On this note, the widespread targeting of civilian infrastructure is likely illegal under international law, as it (i) violates the principle of proportionality in warfare, and (ii) constitutes collective punishment, which is explicitly prohibited.

The IDF has indicated that they prevent the entry of certain items due to their potential dual-use. While the examples they provide may not include food items, this confirms the existence of a policy that is likely being interpreted arbitrarily.

On this note, according to more than two dozen humanitarian and government officials interviewed by CNN, Israel has imposed arbitrary and contradictory criteria for aid entry. The prohibited items include anesthetics and anesthesia machines, oxygen cylinders, ventilators, and water filtration systems. Other items stuck in bureaucratic limbo include dates, sleeping bags, cancer medications, water purification tablets, and maternity kits.

Direct attacks on telecommunications infrastructure by Israel, along with electricity blockades and fuel shortages, have led to the near-total collapse of Gaza's major cellular networks. This severely hinders the distribution of humanitarian aid.

Palestinians have attempted to bypass the communication blackout using eSIM technology [1, 2]. However, this workaround has merely helped prevent a complete information void rather than fully resolving the broader communication crisis.

Some opponents cite videos emerging from Gaza as evidence against the existence of a communication problem. However, this argument is flawed—these videos could have been uploaded during brief periods of connectivity by a limited number of individuals. Their existence does not indicate that communication is functioning reliably or at scale.

First-hand videos show Hamas members stealing humanitarian aid. Here are two examples:

1. A Gaza resident

Footage sent by a Gaza resident and aired by the Kan public broadcaster shows Hamas police beating civilians and blocking access to a truck delivering food aid intended for the civilian population. According to the report, after the incident, the Hamas operatives confiscated the food for their own use.

2. The IDF

Aerial footage released by the IDF from Gaza’s Shijaiyah neighborhood shows Hamas militants unloading humanitarian aid, attacking civilians, and fleeing with stolen goods.

A Fatah TV anchor reported that Hamas' “persecution of any party involved in distributing humanitarian aid” began at the start of the war. The goal of these attacks, according to the anchor, was to “prevent any activity by other parties” and to “ensure Hamas control over the aid.”