GAZA - Hamas on Friday rebuked US Secretary of State Antony Blinken for accusing the movement of obstructing a ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip.
Earlier in the day, Blinken said during a conference held on the sidelines of the Group of Seven meetings on the Italian island of Capri that "the only thing standing between the people of Gaza and a ceasefire is the Hamas movement, which rejects tempting offers from Israel."
Hamas said in a statement that Blinken's words betrayed "the blatant bias of the US administration," and were "distortions of reality"
The movement said in a statement that Blinken's words betrayed "the blatant bias of the US administration," and were "distortions of reality."
The United States, Egypt and Qatar are pushing Israel and Hamas to accept a comprehensive plan that would end the war and see the release of hostages held in Gaza.
Death toll
The Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip announced Thursday that the death toll from ongoing Israeli attacks has exceeded 34,000.
The ministry said in a statement that the Israeli army killed 42 Palestinians and wounded 63 others during the past 24 hours, bringing the total death toll to 34,012 and injuries to 76,833 since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas conflict.
It noted that some victims remain under the rubble amid heavy bombardment and a lack of rescue crews.
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The Israeli army said that its forces cleared and destroyed more than 100 infrastructures over the past week and eliminated more than 40 "terrorists" in face-to-face battles and through airstrikes.
Israeli army spokesman Avichay Adraee said on social media platform X that among the infrastructures destroyed were several military targets, including a site used for manufacturing rocket shells belonging to Hamas, and a site used for producing long-range rocket shells linked to the Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
Gaza City
Meanwhile, the Hamas-run government media office warned on Friday that Gaza City is facing an environmental disaster due to the complete shutdown of water wells for two weeks.
Salama Marouf, head of the Gaza-based media office, said in a statement that the disaster, which is threatening the residents, is caused by the depletion of "scarce fuel provided to Gaza Municipality during the past period."
Gaza has been suffering from a complete power outage since last October, following Israel's halt of electricity and fuel supplies to the enclave, which led to the closure of the only power generation station in Gaza
Gaza City "is experiencing a state of severe thirst due to the water cut-off, especially with the continued suspension of water pumping from the water line operated by Israel's national water company Mekorot since the beginning of the war and the destruction of the desalination plant (the only one in the city), more than 40 water wells, and 120 km of water networks in the city," Marouf said.
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The official mentioned that the crisis has reached its peak, as the temperatures are on the rise and the demand for water is increasing.
He called on all relevant parties to provide urgently needed fuel and restore water supply to the residents, urging the international community to supply the necessary equipment and machinery for their work, especially in light of "the heavy burden currently placed on them in serving the population."
Gaza has been suffering from a complete power outage since last October, following Israel's halt of electricity and fuel supplies to the enclave, which led to the closure of the only power generation station in Gaza.
This forced the basic service infrastructure to rely on backup generators, which are limited due to the scarcity of fuel in the strip.
Israel launched a large-scale offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip to retaliate against a Hamas rampage through the southern Israeli border on Oct 7, 2023, during which about 1,200 people were killed and more than 200 were taken hostage.
