The Gaza Strip Municipalities Union said on Wednesday that the Strip is facing a comprehensive "humanitarian catastrophe" due to the continued Israeli power outages and closure of crossings, following a genocide committed over the past 16 months.

The union explained in a statement that "there is an urgent need to provide sufficient and sustainable supplies of water and electricity, especially after the central desalination plant was shut down as a result of the Israeli occupation's power outage, threatening the lives of Palestinians and deepening the health and environmental crises."

He added, "We condemn the recent decision by the Israeli Minister of Energy and Infrastructure, and the continued power outage in the Gaza Strip since the beginning of the aggression, which has deprived the residents of the Strip of their primary source of energy."

The union noted that "the power outage in Gaza has paralyzed basic services, particularly in the areas of health, water, and sanitation. Water desalination plants, sewage treatment plants, and many municipal facilities have shut down, increasing the risk of the spread of epidemics and diseases."

The statement also noted that "the continuation of these punitive policies against civilians constitutes a flagrant violation of international humanitarian law and exacerbates the suffering of the people of Gaza, who are facing the worst humanitarian crisis in history."

The union stressed that "the refusal to allow the entry of building materials, spare parts, machinery, and alternative energy systems has reduced municipalities' ability to find effective solutions, further exacerbating the crisis and threatening the collapse of basic services."

The Union called on the international community and humanitarian organizations to intervene immediately to secure a sustainable supply of electricity, fuel, and water, and to guarantee the entry of equipment necessary to enable municipalities to continue operating and avert health and environmental disasters that threaten the lives of more than two million people in Gaza.

On Sunday, the Israeli Broadcasting Authority announced that Energy and Infrastructure Minister Eli Cohen had decided to halt the supply of electricity to the Gaza Strip "immediately."

With American support, Israel has been committing genocide in Gaza since October 7, 2023, leaving more than 160,000 Palestinians dead and wounded, most of them children and women, and more than 14,000 missing.

The power outage in the Gaza Strip for approximately 17 months has had disastrous repercussions, impacting all vital and essential services in the Strip, such as hospitals, water, and sanitation, resulting in the deaths of individuals due to the lack of these services.

The first phase of the 42-day ceasefire agreement in Gaza ended in early March, while the Israeli occupation refused to enter the second phase and end the war.

With the end of the first phase of the ceasefire agreement, the occupation re-closed all crossings into Gaza to prevent the entry of humanitarian aid, a move aimed at using starvation as a means of pressuring Hamas to accept its dictates. It later cut off electricity.

In contrast, Hamas repeatedly affirms its commitment to the ceasefire agreement, demands that the occupation abide by it, and calls on mediators to immediately begin second-phase negotiations.