[HotAir] When Israel cut off most of the supplies, fuel, and electricity going into Gaza, they did so for very strategic reasons. At the same time, they cut off most communications inside of the Gaza Strip as well. There were plenty of complaints about this from the usual suspects, but military strategists have remarked on the effectiveness of the strategy. Now, however, a new player is entering the field. Elon Musk announced this weekend that he would be providing Starlink connectivity in Gaza. For the time being, he’s saying that he will only be offering the service to "internationally recognized aid groups" and the United Nations. But it seems rather obvious that Hamas will figure out a way to use this to their advantage against Israel.
...Musk freely admits that if he does this he will be doing it of his own volition. Nobody has contacted Starlink asking for service in Gaza. And it’s unlikely that the Palestinians would have any money to pay for the service even if they desired it. So what is it that Musk is up to here?
...It seems fairly clear that a lack of communications in the region is probably hampering civilian relief efforts by the UN and other groups. I’m sure it’s hard to organize the distribution of aid without being able to effectively stay in touch and direct resources to where they’re needed. And Musk has figured out how to operate his system in a war zone before. He’s been running Starlink for the Ukrainians almost since the beginning of the Russian invasion. But the Starlink ground stations require power to operate and the Israelis have also cut off almost all of the electricity.
...It feels like Elon Musk just can’t help himself. Whenever there is a major event that’s generating all of the headlines for a period of time, it seems like Musk and one or more of his companies wind up being involved. We saw it in Ukraine and now the same thing may play out in the Gaza Strip. Israel has already begun turning some limited communications back on, but they are attempting to strategically hinder Hamas. A lack of communications will make it harder for them to orchestrate the movement of rockets and fighters around the country. If an available communications channel opens up, they will no doubt find a way to use it for themselves. Perhaps Elon Musk should just sit this one out and not interfere in Israel’s counteroffensive.
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