Businessman Elon Musk responded this morning (Sunday) to the decision of Israel's Minister of Communications, Shlomo Karhi, to "sever all ties" with the satellite internet service "Starlink." This comes in the wake of Musk's statement that he would allow humanitarian aid organizations in Gaza to connect to the internet in the Strip using the network.
"We are not that naive," clarified Musk in a tweet he posted on X (formerly Twitter). "So far, no Starlink terminal has attempted to connect from Gaza. If they do try to connect, we will take extraordinary measures to ensure that Starlink serves humanitarian purposes only. In addition, we will conduct security checks with the governments of Israel and the United States before activating any terminal."
As mentioned, last night Musk announced that he would activate the Starlink internet service to allow the UN and recognized humanitarian organizations operating in Gaza to connect to the network. This comes in response to reports that internet and cellular networks in the Gaza Strip were disrupted due to IDF attacks. This action is similar to what was done in Ukraine last year during the war against Russia.
The decision has received widespread criticism in Israel, with Karhi asserting in response that "Israel will use all means at its disposal to combat this. Hamas will use it for terrorist activity. There is no doubt about that. We know this, and Musk knows this. Hamas is like ISIS. Musk can make this conditional on the release of our kidnapped infants, sons, daughters, and elderly. All of them! Until then, my Ministry of Communications will sever all ties with Starlink."
