Luisa Gandolfo - Gaza: Israel has Left 1.7 mn. with no Clean Water, Little Electricity // Why Don't Palestinians Just Leave Gaza? They Can't
When Operation
Protective Edge commenced on July 8, Israel
pledged to draw on lessons learned from previous conflicts to ensure that this
operation would not near the duration of the 2008-2009 Gaza War. But it’s been
three weeks and one day since the conflict began, bringing it in line with Operation
Cast Lead. The infrastructural damage of the previous war has yet to be
repaired – and now it has been set back further, following the destruction
of Gaza’s sole power plant. Serving 1.8m people, the plant was struck
during a seven-hour bombardment in which 128
Palestinians died, bringing the number of fatalities to more than 1,200
Palestinians and 53
Israeli soldiers.
As Israeli prime minister Benjamin
Netanyahu, warned of “a long conflict ahead”, residents of the Gaza Strip
now confront severe water restrictions as the loss of the station paralyses the
region’s water pumps and electricity will be unavailable for months to come.
Water in Gaza
Water has assumed a significant role in the conflict: on a
basic level it is a source of life and livelihood; at others, it is intertwined
with laws that can shape the lives of the civilians dwelling in the West
Bank , Negev and Gaza . When a water source is struck, it adds an additional lethal
dimension to the conflict, as survival is not just threatened by weapons, but
by the silent killers, disease and deprivation.
During the Gaza War water was a prime casualty, when
military attacks caused US$6m of damage through
the destruction of four water reservoirs, eleven wells, sewage networks and pumping
stations. By 2012, 95% of the water was unfit for human consumption as pollutants
infused the remaining 117 water wells and the contamination has been
exacerbated as efforts to rebuild or sustain existing sources are stymied by
transport restrictions. The result is a deterioration
of the water and sewage system, also caused by over-pumping to counter
dwindling water supplies.
The fall in water levels is a regional issue. According to a 2013 NASA study,
between 2003 and 2009 the Middle East lost 144 cubic kilometres of stored
freshwater, an amount on
par with the loss of the Dead Sea. Facing rising pollution and falling
supplies, prior to the current unrest 80% of Gazans paid a
third of their household income for fresh water.
Thirst for control
In the West Bank and Negev ,
the issue of water is no less bleak: acts of sabotage, the denial of permits to
own water cisterns and limitations on access to water sources have been an
enduring part of the landscape. Water has become a means of control, determining
the future ownership of a plot of land, the success or failure of a
business, or the means to render a community unlivable.
The designation of land for agriculture or forestry affords
a means to prohibit
the development of existing villages: once designated, residents are banned
from constructing further structures, including water cisterns. Should they
proceed with the structure, it will be demolished, regardless of its purpose. Atir, near Beer Sheva, hosts a community of 500 Bedouin,
many of whom were relocated to the village in 1956 by Israeli authorities. At
the time, it was deemed a suitable location; in 2013, it was decided that it
would better serve as a forest and security forces demolished
the homes of 70 people, followed by the tents in which the displaced were
living. In the wider region, wells have been drilled to divert water
to the settlements in the West Bank , disrupting
Palestinian water lines and in a more overt manner, confiscating water tankers.
Deprived of their water source, West Bank residents pay
up to 400%
more per litre than those directly connected to the water network,
while in 2012 water access in the West Bank stood at 25%
less than Israeli access.
Tactical sabotage
Once water is gathered, the quest does not end; rather, the
new challenge is retaining the drinkable water. According to Oxfam, between
2011 and 2012, 62
European-funded water structures were demolished in Area C, including
in the Jordan Valley
In the former, bulldozers are used to destroy structures
deemed illegal; in other instances, individual acts of sabotage can be driven
by ennui. According to a 2009 report by
Amnesty International, soldiers shot water tanks to pass the time, since “water
tanks are good for target practice; they are everywhere and are the right size
to aim at and calibrate your weapon, to relieve your frustration … or to break
the monotony of a stint of guard duty.”
Such sabotage strikes the owner hard, as each cistern costs
the equivalent of a
year and a half’s wages, quite apart from the deprivation the destruction
of a water source inevitably entails. Just as the West Bank and Negev
have witnessed a slow, steady process of demolition, Gaza
is accelerating towards a profound humanitarian catastrophe. To the
displacement of 200,337 Palestinians can be added restrictions on water and the
absence of electricity to
power what remains of the health centres and the 85 shelters around
the Strip.
On July 14, the prime minister’s spokesman, Mark Regev,
stated: “If we know that innocent civilians will be hurt, we will call off
the operation.” Cutting off the electricity means cutting off the life
support to those who have a chance to survive the bombardment, whether in
hospital or in the shelters. Water is needed by all and by removing that
source, all have been condemned alike.
This article was originally published on The Conversation.
Read the original
article.
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