On December 26, the Gaza Strip faced another long night of darkness as Israeli airstrikes continued to disrupt access to essential services. Telephone networks and the Internet were cut off for nearly two million residents, marking the eighth major outage since October 27. The Israeli military described expansion of ground operations, a move many observers saw as a shift from silence toward a broader, more visible conflict in the besieged area.
Yet Gazans found ways to stay connected. A small, virtual card embedded in mobile phones began to broaden network access. Mirna El Helbawi, an Egyptian writer and activist, anticipated the rising connectivity challenge and launched a global fundraiser at the suggestion of followers on X. In collaboration with Connecting Humanity, the NGO helped tens of thousands of Gazans stay in touch with family and friends during a period of intense fighting.
“The connection is not stable, but it exists—barely enough to pass messages and reassure loved ones”, said Samar Labad, a resident of a town in the area. The ability to communicate is crucial for Gazans to stay informed about developments and to maintain contact with those far away in a time of crisis.
“The internet is gone, but my wife is still working and I can monitor the entire house wirelessly.”
— Mirna El Helbawi
useful technology
eSIMs are software-based versions of traditional SIM cards. Instead of being tied to a physical card, users can scan a QR code to activate a plan that connects them to a mobile network. Access to the internet is still a prerequisite for setup, which can pose initial challenges in a disrupted environment. The Guardian has reported that Israeli authorities have effectively constrained the use of these cards for many years.
The campaign, supported by El Helbawi in Cairo, relies on donors who purchase eSIMs from suppliers in their own countries and send the QR codes to a 31-year-old activist who activates the cards and shares the codes with Gazans. The effort has inspired other residents to reach out to the 11 activists who formed the campaign, as Connecting Humanity scales the process to broaden its reach.
This technology was showcased at industry gatherings and has the potential to link Gazans to remote networks, often through roaming connections that bypass local operators. The cost of an eSIM varies, typically ranging from 15 to 100 dollars, with limited validity in many cases.
Another option to improve connectivity is satellite internet via Starlink, a venture led by Elon Musk. At the end of October, Musk stated that Starlink would be deployed to assist internationally recognized aid organizations in the region. The Israeli government objected to the plan, prompting renewed dialogue. By late November, both sides agreed to proceed only with Jerusalem’s approval, a step that reinforced Helbawi’s determination to push the campaign forward.
Communicative drowning
On October 11, electricity supplies were deliberately cut, and aid deliveries—food and fuel—were also restricted to the Gaza Strip. Since then, connectivity in the region has stayed well below pre-conflict levels, with estimates around 30 percent or lower, according to data from IODA, Cloudflare, and NetBlocks. The disruption results from air strikes on critical infrastructure such as telecommunications towers, service line closures, or fuel shortages; a troubling pattern that many describe as a form of choking off daily life for Gaza’s residents.
⚠ Confirmed: Live measurements show ongoing network instability, indicating the current outage aligns with prior disruptions and will likely leave many residents offline.
Human Rights Watch has warned that such cuts could mask abuses and foster impunity, while also risking humanitarian efforts and endangering lives. In the hours before the power outage, reports indicated heavy bombardment in refugee camps, underscoring the fragile humanitarian situation on the ground.
These virtual cards have become essential tools for emergency services and aid work. Medical teams and NGOs use them to detect bombings and treat victims. UNRWA, which assists Palestinian refugees, coordinates aid deliveries and supports organizational relief efforts in the field.
Access to eSIMs also aims to prevent the silencing of Palestinian suffering; journalists use them daily to report on the humanitarian impact of the conflict. Local reporters have emphasized that without such tools, the world would remain unaware of what is unfolding in Gaza.