Israel instructed its state-owned power supplier on Saturday to suspend power supplies to the Gaza Strip after the Palestinian militant group Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel.
Israel Katz, the energy minister, said he had instructed the power supplier in writing to suspend electricity supply to Gaza.
RNews earlier reported that Hamas launched a deadly rocket attack on Israel and Israel responded with devastating airstrikes on Gaza.
Several countries have meanwhile condemned Hamas’s attack on Israel.
Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, president of Egypt, warned on Saturday about a “violent cycle” of violence.
Sisi received a call from French President Emmanuel Macron. The two presidents discussed “cooperative efforts” to prevent an escalation of violence in the Gaza Strip.
In the past, Egypt was a key mediator in the conflict between Israel and Palestine.
Egypt’s foreign minister, Sameh Shoukry, also made a series of calls, including to his counterparts in Russia, Turkey, Germany, France and Spain, in an effort to encourage “international actors” to “immediately intervene”. .
Ursula von der Leyen, head of the European Union, described Hamas’s attack as “terror in its most despicable form”.
Egypt appealed to the international community “to warn Israel to stop the attacks and provocative action against Palestinians” and to “comply with the principles of international humanitarian law regarding the responsibilities of an occupying state”.
Daniel Hagari, spokesman for the Israeli army, meanwhile said that soldiers and civilians had been kidnapped by Hamas. “I cannot give numbers at the moment. This is a war crime by Hamas and they will pay the price.”
Magen David Adom emergency services said the death toll in Israel after the surprise attack stood at 70. “Hundreds were seriously, moderately and lightly injured.”
The Gaza health ministry said at least 198 people were killed in Gaza on Saturday, with 1,610 injured.
