The central Gaza city of Deir al Balah on Monday afternoon accused Israel of cutting electricity to two desalination facilities.
According to the city, the desalination plants provide 70% of the city's water supply, supplying over 20,000 cubic meters of desalinated water.
Israel denied the accusations, saying that the desalination plants were suffering a localized malfunction, and that the electricity supply had not been cut.
At a meeting of the Religious Zionist party earlier on Monday, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said that after blocking humanitarian aid to Gaza and the Hamas terror group, "the next step will be cutting the water and electricity, and opening the gates of hell on Gaza with a powerful, deadly, and quick strike that will lead to the conquest of the area and moving forward with [US President Donald] Trump's plan of encouraging emigration of Gaza's residents."
On Sunday, Israel's political echelon decided to halt the transfer of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, following Hamas' refusal to extend the first phase of the ceasefire deal, which saw convicted terrorists exchanged for hostages, mostly civilians, who were kidnapped during the October 7 massacre.