--- title: "Elon Musk’s Promise to Bring Starlink to Gaza May Be Dead on Arrival" description: "SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has promised to provide Starlink internet to aid groups in Gaza — but it might not work there at all." date: "2023-10-30" modified: "2023-10-30" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/elon-musk-gaza-starlink" categories: - "Elon Musk" - "Future Society" - "The Industrialists" tags: - "elon musk" - "palestine" - "starlink" - "the digest" --- # Elon Musk’s Promise to Bring Starlink to Gaza May Be Dead on Arrival ![]() *\Image: Getty / Futurism\* ## 404 Error Amid the [hellish humanitarian crisis in Gaza](), SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has promised to provide Starlink internet access to aid groups in the besieged region — but there are some enormous hurdles to clear before that promise can come to fruition. After [internet connectivity was cut to Gaza]() on Friday night, [Musk tweeted]() that SpaceX "will support communication links with internationally recognized aid organizations" while admitting that "no terminals" in the area had "attempted to communicate with our constellation." As [*Al Jazeera* reports](), that's probably because nothing can get in or out of the blighted strip of land due to [Israel's "total" blockade on the area]() for its alleged support of the militant group Hamas. "Starlink terminals or dishes in Gaza would be difficult to smuggle in and distribute at scale," Marc Owen Jones, a journalist and associated professor of Middle East studies at Qatar's Hamad bin Khalifa University, told the news network. "The Israeli government is unlikely to allow legal imports of it." There have been comments from Israeli officials to that effect, too. "Israel will use all means at its disposal to fight this," Israel's communications minister, Shlomo Karhi, [tweeted in response to Musk](). The official added because the country believes Hamas "will use \[the terminals\] for terrorist activities," his office plans to "cut any ties" it has to Starlink. ## Block Button Even if Starlink were able to make inroads despite the government's apparent opposition, Owen Jones says that other infrastructural issues that have occurred as a result of the Israel-Hamas war would also stand in the way. "How will it be powered?" the Middle East expert told *Al Jazeera* ."There is no fuel in Gaza right now." While there has been some precedent for Starlink access during humanitarian crises in the past — when Musk made a [similar promise to Ukraine]() in early 2022 after Russia first invaded its neighbor — [*Politico* pointed out]() that it primarily worked because the infrastructure (read: terminals) were already there and able to be activated easily. In Gaza, meanwhile, it's unclear if there are any Starlink dishes at all. Given the communications minister's promise of a soft ban on the terminals, it's hard to imagine any more getting in anytime soon. Israel has, per insider [sources that spoke to the *Washington Post*](), restored communications and internet access to Gaza following pressure from US officials — but as of right now, it doesn't seem like Starlink is part of that equation at all. **More on Musk and the Middle East:** [*Elon Musk Is in Big Trouble Over the Israel-Palestine Violence*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()