JERUSALEM (AP) — The Israeli military calculated the number of calories that Gaza’s residents would need to consume to avoid malnutrition during a sweeping blockade imposed on the Palestinian territory from 2007 to mid-2010, according to a document that the Defense Ministry released under a court order and that was made public on Wednesday.

The military insisted that it never used the guidelines to restrict the flow of food to Gaza. But critics disputed that, saying the calculations appeared to have guided limits on food imports. They said the document provided further evidence that Israel used food as a weapon to put pressure on Hamas, the militant group that won legislative elections in 2006 and took full control of Gaza in 2007 after a brief factional war.

The blockade was imposed shortly after Hamas took over Gaza. Israel declared it a hostile territory in September 2007. Seeking to weaken the militants, it called for “severe restrictions” on civilians that included limitations on food.

Israel maintained that the blockade was necessary to weaken Hamas, but critics accused the government of taking aim at Gaza’s 1.5 million people.