Four hundred thousand people in Gaza – almost a fifth of the
population - do not have access to a regular clean water supply
after 11 days of bombardment devastated electricity and water
services and severely affected the three main desalination plants
in Gaza city, Oxfam warned today.
All of Gaza’s 2.1 million people have been affected by
Israel’s bombing that took 240 lives, destroyed or damaged 258
buildings containing nearly 1,042 homes and commercial offices, and
devastated vital public services. Around 100,000 Palestinians were
displaced by the bombing and are attempting to return home. Even if
their homes are still standing, life will not be normal.
Shane Stevenson, Oxfam Country Director in the Occupied
Palestinian Territory and Israel, said:
“Gaza is largely dependent upon fuel for its electricity,
including to pump clean water from wells into homes. With the
disruption in the supply causing a shortage of fuel, hundreds of
thousands of people in Gaza will soon have no access to basic
hygiene.
“Water is doubly important, during this critical phase of the
Coronavirus pandemic, to help people limit the spread of COVID-19.
Six hospitals and 11 clinics have also been damaged including the
only COVID-19 laboratory in Gaza.”
Gaza and the West Bank have already recorded more than
330,000 COVID-19 cases and more than 3,700 people have died due to
the virus.
Vital businesses and fishing have also been affected.
Stevenson said:
“Electricity cuts and the destruction of office buildings
have forced many small businesses to come to a halt. Israel's
authorities have stopped the bombing but are now restricting fuel
deliveries. They have also closed most of the Gaza fishing zone,
meaning nearly 3,600 fishermen have now lost their daily income and
food.
Even before the recent hostilities, the average daily
consumption of water was just 88 litres per capita - far below the
global minimum requirement of 100 litres. Amal, a mother in
Northern Gaza told Oxfam: “We [now] only get four hours of
electricity a day, and we don't have a schedule for it. Water might
be available for one hour, but we won't have electricity to pump
the water to the roof tank. We stay up all night looking for water
to fill plastic buckets”.
Oxfam is working with partners to provide people with
immediate lifesaving clean water, hygiene kits and cash to help
people buy food and their essentials, and to restore destroyed
water systems. The international agency aims to help an additional
282,000 people and needs £2.2m to ramp up its humanitarian
assistance in Gaza.
Stevenson said: “Meeting people’s immediate humanitarian
needs is critical now. But Gaza cannot rebuild without addressing
the root causes of the conflict. The cycle of war means any
humanitarian effort now could be lost again tomorrow. The
international community must ensure concrete political action to
bring an end to the occupation and the ongoing blockade of the Gaza
Strip.”
Ends
Notes to editors:
- The World Health Organization has set the minimum requirement
for daily per capita water consumption at 100 liters. This amount
should cover basic domestic needs such as drinking, bathing,
cooking, and washing. In Gaza, average daily per capita
consumption is only
88 litres; in Israel, by comparison, it is
more than 200.
- Figures on impacted hospitals were reported in OCHA Flash
Report #9, 19 May
- The Covid laboratory has now resumed working as per OCHA
Flash Report # 11 on 21 May
