“Israel” Weaponizing Water in Gaza 

By Staff, Agencies 

“Israel” has used access to water as a weapon and a form of “collective punishment” against Palestinians in Gaza, according to a report by international medical charity Doctors Without Borders [MSF]. 

The organization said in a report released Tuesday that “Israel” has “engineered” water scarcity in the strip, creating “conditions incompatible with human dignity and survival.” 

“Access to water, sanitation and hygiene has been “severely undermined” since the start of the “Israeli” aggression in Gaza in October 2023,” it stated.

The report highlights a sharp rise in water-shortage-related diseases, including diarrhea, skin infections, lice, and infected wounds. Additionally, the lack of clean water and sanitation is also worsening malnutrition and severely affecting mental health.

Gaza has no natural freshwater sources, relying instead on groundwater and seawater, both of which require treatment. Much of the infrastructure, including desalination plants, boreholes, pipelines, and sewage systems, has been rendered inoperable or inaccessible, according to MSF.

Amid the collapse of the public system, MSF has become the largest non-governmental water producer in Gaza, pumping and desalinating groundwater through mobile units and distributing it by truck to affected areas. The report noted that multiple MSF trucks have been attacked by “Israeli” occupation forces.

The minimum humanitarian threshold is about 15 liters of water per person per day, including 6 liters for drinking and 9 liters for domestic use. In Gaza, people are receiving this bare survival level at best, according to UNICEF, with many unable to access even the minimum amount of safe drinking water.