Gaza Residents Suffering From Severe Water Shortage Due to Conflict
Gaza residents are suffering from a severe water shortage as a result of the ongoing conflict there.
Damage to wells and Gaza’s energy infrastructure has disrupted the pumping and distribution of water, cutting the coastal strip’s water supply by half, according to Haaretz.
In addition, hundreds of thousands of displaced Gazans have been unable to bathe regularly. Haaretz reported that the water shortage could lead to the spread of infections and skin diseases.
The Palestinian Water Authority told Haaretz that bombing destroyed 11 wells and two purification plants while damaging an additional 15 wells and four purification plants.
Workers began repairs on the infrastructure during the cease-fires of recent weeks, but the repairs are expected to stop now that fighting has resumed. Ninety percent of the water in Gaza is not potable, making the purification plants crucial to the area’s drinking supply.
A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.
Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO