Israeli authorities cut off water, causing public health crisis in Gaza

The Israeli government has imposed an illegal blockade of Gaza for more than a month, which has included catastrophic water, fuel and electricity supplies, as well as very limited supplies of food, water and medical supplies, resulting in a lack of clean water. Public health experts are concerned about the impending outbreak in Gaza. expressed “serious concern” about infectious diseases, including water-borne diseases such as cholera and typhoid.

On November 11, the head of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA))

Said: “Every little girl and boy I met in the UNRWA (Gaza) shelter asked me for bread and water.”

After October 7, the Israeli government closed the water pipeline to Gaza. It has since concluded that piped water only comes to parts of southern Gaza, with some water coming in through Egypt, but it does not reach everyone and is not enough to meet the needs of the Gaza population, requiring many to rely on local water supplies. However, according to the United Nations, more than 96% of Gaza’s water supply is “unfit for human consumption.” According to the Palestinian Water Authority, wastewater and desalination facilities were shut down in mid-October due to fuel and electricity shortages and have been largely inoperable since then.

Since the lockdown began, water shortages and pollution have severely hampered access to health services, sickened people and have led to disease outbreaks, creating a public health crisis.

Without clean water, health facilities cannot function. The World Health Organization reports that “devastated water and sanitation systems and dwindling cleaning supplies have made it nearly impossible for health facilities to maintain basic infection prevention and control measures” and that drinking contaminated water significantly increases the risk of bacterial infections. , such as diarrhea, with more than half of reported cases in children under five years of age. On November 14, Human Rights Watch interviewed a doctor at Al-Aqsa Hospital, who reported that they had seen a sharp increase in dehydration cases. The doctor added, “There are countless cases of gastroenteritis.”

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) also expressed serious concern that “if children continue to drink unsafe water and are unable to access medicines when they become ill, the death toll will increase exponentially.”

The Israeli government should immediately end its total blockade of the Gaza Strip collective punishment and war crimes, restore water and electricity, and allow much-needed food, medical aid, and fuel to enter Gaza, including through the Kerem Shalom crossing.