A million Israelis face mobile blackout as 2G, 3G shutdown looms
Israel’s tech leap risks leaving its most vulnerable offline—Haredi, elderly, poor—right as war demands connection. Cellular giants chase profits, but the clock’s ticking to avert a blackout.
A million Israelis could lose mobile phone access by year’s end as cellular companies prepare to axe second- and third-generation (2G and 3G) networks on December 31. The move, set after four years of planning, threatens communication chaos—especially for Haredi, elderly, and low-income users—amid war and tech transitions.
Shutdown Details: A Million at Risk
The Ministry of Communications estimates 1.5 million mobile lines still rely on 2G and 3G, with a million in personal hands and 500,000 tied to devices like gates and medical equipment. A study leaked to Israel Hayom warns that the December cutoff could sever phone service for these users, disrupt data, and disable critical systems—think elevators or defibrillators. “Leaving a million people without cellular in wartime is unthinkable,” a senior official said, citing Germany’s week-long outage after a similar switch.
These aging networks, offering voice-only service, serve Haredi users with “kosher” phones, religious Jews avoiding smartphones, seniors wedded to button devices, and poorer households unable to upgrade. Companies, spending millions to maintain them, will drop 2G and 3G simultaneously to avoid competitive losses, per Ministry orders.