(CNN) – A Palestinian telecommunications company said Friday that “all communications and Internet services have been completely cut off” in Gaza, while the Israeli military announced it was “expanding ground operations” as Israel continued to bombard the coastal enclave with airstrikes. .”

“This is the worst internet blackout in Gaza since the latest war between Israel and Hamas began on October 7,” independent internet watchdog groups told CNN, raising fears that Palestinian citizens will be unable to communicate with the outside world. War escalates.

The Palestinian Telecommunications Company (Paltel) said in a post on Facebook on Friday evening: “We regret to announce the complete suspension of all communication and internet services with the Gaza Strip in light of the ongoing occupation.”

The company provides internet and mobile phone services in Gaza and the West Bank.

“The violent bombardment of the past hour has led to the destruction of all remaining international routes connecting Gaza to the outside world,” he continued, adding, “This destruction is in addition to what was previously destroyed during the ongoing occupation. All communication services have been cut off.”

“It could be days before Gazans regain widespread Internet access because of the current bombing and crisis,” said Doug Madori, director of Internet analytics at Kinetic, a California firm that monitors Internet connectivity worldwide. “Humanity.”

Madori went further on CNN saying that the current blackout “may be the worst Gaza has ever seen,” adding: “In 2014 Gaza saw a war internet blackout, but that’s not the case.”

London-based internet monitoring firm NetBlocks told CNN that Friday’s strike “marks a breakthrough in the ability of Gazans to communicate the situation in Gaza to the outside world,” adding that the current internet blockade in Gaza is… “the largest since the beginning of the conflict.”