Power outages have become a regular part of daily life in war-torn Gaza.
However, with the help of embedded SIM cards (eSIMs), some Palestinians are still able to access the Internet and maintain a vital channel of communication with their loved ones abroad. "Without them, we would be cut off from the world," said Hani al-Shaer, a local journalist who depends on eSIM cards to do his live broadcasts. "And no one would know what was happening in Gaza," he added, a day after the besieged territory suffered the latest in a series of telecommunications outages since the start of the war.
Human Rights Watch warned that cutting phone and internet connections in Gaza could "provide a cover for atrocities and lead to impunity, while further undermining humanitarian efforts and putting lives at risk."
Vowing to destroy Hamas but affecting civilians and infrastructure, Israel has carried out indiscriminate air and ground attacks in Gaza since October 7, reducing entire areas to rubble and killing at least 20,915 Palestinians, mostly women and children. 54,918 others were injured, according to local health authorities.
The idea behind eSIMs is simple: they are a software version of the chips traditionally placed in phones to connect to cellular networks and the Internet. Built directly into the device, they can be activated using a QR code that Gazans receive from family members living abroad. Gazans can then connect in roaming mode to a foreign network - often Israeli or sometimes Egyptian.
eSIM is a godsend, says Samar Labad. The 38-year-old woman fled her home in the southern city of Gaza, where tens of thousands of displaced Palestinians live in makeshift camps. Now in Rafah, she has lost contact with her family for over a week. But then her brother, who lives in Belgium, sent her an e-card. "The relationship is not stable, but it works," she says. "At least we can keep in touch to reassure each other, albeit intermittently," added Labad, who has relatives in Khan Younis.
"I learn how they do from someone who lives with them and whose phone is compatible with eSIM," the woman pointed out. The service is only available in areas near the border with Israel. In other cases, you have to get on the roof to pick up a signal.
A local mobile phone shop owner said his main customers are journalists who use eSIMs to provide the outside world with accurate information about the situation in Gaza. He said they provide vital communications with the outside world, "that the besieged territory lacks basic products necessary for survival". Among its eSIM customers are doctors and civil defense officials who want to know the exact location of strikes to help people.
United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) staff also use them to organize aid convoys. Although the cards help compensate for telecommunications outages, they require internet access to activate. Their price ranges from "15 to 100 dollars, depending on how long they are valid," said journalist Yasser Kudih. He added that local journalists with eSIMs end up serving as messengers for other people. "Many expats contact us to follow the latest news from Gaza and get information about their families," he noted. /BGNES, AFP
