9 sept 2012
91 children hospitalized after drinking contaminated water
Around 91 schoolboys from the Jenin village of Sanur were taken to Jenin's public hospital and emergency clinics in the village
JENIN (Ma'an) -- Over 90 schoolboys were hospitalized on Sunday after drinking contaminated water in a Jenin village, a PA official said.
Director of the Jenin district's ministry of health, Salih Zakarna, told Ma'an that samples from the school's water tanks tested positive for contamination.
Around 91 schoolboys from the village of Sanur were taken to Jenin's public hospital and emergency clinics in the village after reporting symptoms of severe fatigue, nausea and fever.
All were later released after treatment, Zarkana said.
A letter was sent by the PA Ministry of Health to the school, and officials in Qabatiya, to demand that they replace all water tanks and fix the water system in the area, he added.
Food samples from the school canteen were also sent to a laboratory for testing.
The incident comes after 24 children were admitted to hospital in Jenin on Saturday after drinking contaminated water in their elementary school.
Parents reported symptoms of vomiting and a high fever, a police statement said.
Jenin governor Talal Dweikat ordered police to carry out a full investigation into both cases.
JENIN (Ma'an) -- Over 90 schoolboys were hospitalized on Sunday after drinking contaminated water in a Jenin village, a PA official said.
Director of the Jenin district's ministry of health, Salih Zakarna, told Ma'an that samples from the school's water tanks tested positive for contamination.
Around 91 schoolboys from the village of Sanur were taken to Jenin's public hospital and emergency clinics in the village after reporting symptoms of severe fatigue, nausea and fever.
All were later released after treatment, Zarkana said.
A letter was sent by the PA Ministry of Health to the school, and officials in Qabatiya, to demand that they replace all water tanks and fix the water system in the area, he added.
Food samples from the school canteen were also sent to a laboratory for testing.
The incident comes after 24 children were admitted to hospital in Jenin on Saturday after drinking contaminated water in their elementary school.
Parents reported symptoms of vomiting and a high fever, a police statement said.
Jenin governor Talal Dweikat ordered police to carry out a full investigation into both cases.
Official: 15 hurt in Nablus village after settler raid
Qusra lies near several settlements and outposts and is the site of regular assaults by their residents.
NABLUS (Ma’an) -- After Israeli settlers raided the northern West Bank village of Qusra on Saturday night, clashes with Israeli forces injured 15 Palestinians from the village, a local official said.
Around 30 settlers from the Esh Kodesh settler outpost descended on the village in the evening, PA official Ghassan Daghlas told Ma’an. They uprooted several olive trees and destroyed water wells, before assaulting some villagers, he added.
Israeli forces arrived and fired tear gas and rubber bullets, Daghlas continued. The clashes continued for several hours and left 15 people from the village injured, he said.
An Israeli army spokeswoman said forces used riot dispersal means to disperse a clash between Palestinians and Israelis, but said no one needed evacuation.
Qusra lies near several settlements and outposts and is the site of regular assaults by their residents.
Issam Kamal Odeh, 33, died from Israeli army fire in September 2011 after soldiers came to the village after a settler raid.
NABLUS (Ma’an) -- After Israeli settlers raided the northern West Bank village of Qusra on Saturday night, clashes with Israeli forces injured 15 Palestinians from the village, a local official said.
Around 30 settlers from the Esh Kodesh settler outpost descended on the village in the evening, PA official Ghassan Daghlas told Ma’an. They uprooted several olive trees and destroyed water wells, before assaulting some villagers, he added.
Israeli forces arrived and fired tear gas and rubber bullets, Daghlas continued. The clashes continued for several hours and left 15 people from the village injured, he said.
An Israeli army spokeswoman said forces used riot dispersal means to disperse a clash between Palestinians and Israelis, but said no one needed evacuation.
Qusra lies near several settlements and outposts and is the site of regular assaults by their residents.
Issam Kamal Odeh, 33, died from Israeli army fire in September 2011 after soldiers came to the village after a settler raid.
8 sept 2012
24 children admitted to hospital after drinking contaminated water
Children fill water bottles in the Gaza Strip
JENIN (Ma'an) -- Twenty-four children were admitted to hospital in Jenin on Saturday after drinking contaminated water in their elementary school, police said.
Parents reported symptoms of vomiting and a high fever, a police statement said. Eighteen children are still in hospital and six have been released after treatment.
Police are investigating the incident.
JENIN (Ma'an) -- Twenty-four children were admitted to hospital in Jenin on Saturday after drinking contaminated water in their elementary school, police said.
Parents reported symptoms of vomiting and a high fever, a police statement said. Eighteen children are still in hospital and six have been released after treatment.
Police are investigating the incident.
4 sept 2012
Turkey-funded sanitation project opened in Gaza
The water authority of coastal municipalities on Monday inaugurated a Turkey-funded wastewater treatment plant in the central Gaza Strip.
Kroichen Mohamed, a representative of the Turkish government, said during the opening ceremony that the Turkish international cooperation and coordination agency TIKA, which funded the project, would continue to help Gaza people and bring happiness into their lives.
"One of the most important problems the Gaza Strip is facing is water and sanitation, so we are working hard in cooperation with the water authority of coastal municipalities to solve and limit these existing problems," Mohamed stated.
He stressed that TIKA would continue to provide vital projects for Gaza people in the near future.
The Turkish official also promised that Turkey would continue to support Gaza people and confront the Israeli blockade together with them.
For his part, head of the water authority of coastal municipalities Munder Shiblak expressed his thanks to the Turkish government and TIKA for extending help to the Palestinian people.
Shiblak affirmed that the water authority and TIKA completed projects estimated at five million dollars, hoping that the Turkish funding would rise to 50 million dollars in the next few years.
Kroichen Mohamed, a representative of the Turkish government, said during the opening ceremony that the Turkish international cooperation and coordination agency TIKA, which funded the project, would continue to help Gaza people and bring happiness into their lives.
"One of the most important problems the Gaza Strip is facing is water and sanitation, so we are working hard in cooperation with the water authority of coastal municipalities to solve and limit these existing problems," Mohamed stated.
He stressed that TIKA would continue to provide vital projects for Gaza people in the near future.
The Turkish official also promised that Turkey would continue to support Gaza people and confront the Israeli blockade together with them.
For his part, head of the water authority of coastal municipalities Munder Shiblak expressed his thanks to the Turkish government and TIKA for extending help to the Palestinian people.
Shiblak affirmed that the water authority and TIKA completed projects estimated at five million dollars, hoping that the Turkish funding would rise to 50 million dollars in the next few years.
3 sept 2012
UN report: Gaza water would be unusable by 2016
A new UN reported warned that the crisis of the polluted and unclean water in the Gaza Strip is getting worse and seriously affecting the civilians' health.
Gaza’s rapidly growing population of about 1. 64 million, which is expected to increase by 500, 000 by 2020, could soon lose its main source of fresh water from the underground coastal aquifer, which could become unusable by 2016 and sustain irreversible damage by 2020, the report said.
Clean water is limited for most Gazans to an average of 70 to 90 liters per person per day, compared to the minimum global world health organization (WHO) standard of 100 liters a day, according to Mahmoud Daher, officer in charge of the WHO in Gaza.
“We have respiratory diseases, skin diseases, eye diseases, gastroenteritis, which can all be linked to polluted water,” said Mohamed Al-Kashef, general director of the international cooperation department in the Gaza health ministry.
According to the UNICEF 2010 update, diseases associated with water account for about 26 percent of diseases in Gaza.
The nitrate contamination of the aquifer is believed to be a threat to infants and pregnant women in Gaza, the UNICEF said.
One of the child diseases connected to polluted water is Methemoglobinemia, or the blue-baby syndrome, which has occurred among babies born in Gaza. It is believed that high nitrate contamination in groundwater is causing the disease.
"Diarrhea, which has become very common in the Gaza Strip, is most likely linked to poor hygiene standards in enterprises which desalinate water," says Mahmoud Daher.
"Damage to the coastal aquifer will be irreversible without immediate remedial action," the UN report warned further.
Gaza’s rapidly growing population of about 1. 64 million, which is expected to increase by 500, 000 by 2020, could soon lose its main source of fresh water from the underground coastal aquifer, which could become unusable by 2016 and sustain irreversible damage by 2020, the report said.
Clean water is limited for most Gazans to an average of 70 to 90 liters per person per day, compared to the minimum global world health organization (WHO) standard of 100 liters a day, according to Mahmoud Daher, officer in charge of the WHO in Gaza.
“We have respiratory diseases, skin diseases, eye diseases, gastroenteritis, which can all be linked to polluted water,” said Mohamed Al-Kashef, general director of the international cooperation department in the Gaza health ministry.
According to the UNICEF 2010 update, diseases associated with water account for about 26 percent of diseases in Gaza.
The nitrate contamination of the aquifer is believed to be a threat to infants and pregnant women in Gaza, the UNICEF said.
One of the child diseases connected to polluted water is Methemoglobinemia, or the blue-baby syndrome, which has occurred among babies born in Gaza. It is believed that high nitrate contamination in groundwater is causing the disease.
"Diarrhea, which has become very common in the Gaza Strip, is most likely linked to poor hygiene standards in enterprises which desalinate water," says Mahmoud Daher.
"Damage to the coastal aquifer will be irreversible without immediate remedial action," the UN report warned further.
28 aug 2012
Army Destroys 5 Wells, 5 Tents Near Hebron
Israeli soldiers destroyed, on Tuesday morning, five wells and three tents used by local residents of Zannouta area, in addition to removing two tents in a Khirbit Susya village, south of the southern West Bank city of Hebron.
Local sources reported that the army, accompanied by a military bulldozer, destroyed five wells and three tents in Zannouta, and the soldiers violently assaulted a number of Palestinian residents protesting the destruction of their property.
The destroyed wells and tents belong Odah Abu Sharkh, Edeis Abu Sharkh, Nabil Samamra and Mohammad Khaled Samamra.
In Susya, the army removed two tents used by Mohammad Mousa Mghannam and ten family members.
Nasr Nawaj’a, a resident of Susya, said that the army first demolished the structures nearly a month ago, and demolished them again today in order to expand the illegal Susia settlement, built on the residents land.
On Monday, the army handed several residents of nearby villages military orders informing them to leave their homes in preparation to demolish them.
The attack comes in implementation of an order made by Israeli Defense Minister, Ehud Barak, who decided to displace eight Palestinian villages south of Hebron in order to transform the area into a military zone.
Furthermore, residents of Kbhirbit At-Tabban village, received notices handed to them by the army ordering them to remove solar panels that provide them with power.
In related news, a number of extremist settlers burnt, on Monday at night, three Palestinian cars in Wad Khamis area, close to Sa’ir town, near Hebron. The torched vehicles belong to residents Zein Ed-Deen, Mohammad and Mahdi Al-Froukh.
Local sources reported that the army, accompanied by a military bulldozer, destroyed five wells and three tents in Zannouta, and the soldiers violently assaulted a number of Palestinian residents protesting the destruction of their property.
The destroyed wells and tents belong Odah Abu Sharkh, Edeis Abu Sharkh, Nabil Samamra and Mohammad Khaled Samamra.
In Susya, the army removed two tents used by Mohammad Mousa Mghannam and ten family members.
Nasr Nawaj’a, a resident of Susya, said that the army first demolished the structures nearly a month ago, and demolished them again today in order to expand the illegal Susia settlement, built on the residents land.
On Monday, the army handed several residents of nearby villages military orders informing them to leave their homes in preparation to demolish them.
The attack comes in implementation of an order made by Israeli Defense Minister, Ehud Barak, who decided to displace eight Palestinian villages south of Hebron in order to transform the area into a military zone.
Furthermore, residents of Kbhirbit At-Tabban village, received notices handed to them by the army ordering them to remove solar panels that provide them with power.
In related news, a number of extremist settlers burnt, on Monday at night, three Palestinian cars in Wad Khamis area, close to Sa’ir town, near Hebron. The torched vehicles belong to residents Zein Ed-Deen, Mohammad and Mahdi Al-Froukh.
27 aug 2012
Water Authority Condemns Israeli Demolition of Wells
Head of the Palestinian Water Authority (PWA) Shaddad Attili condemned Israel’s destruction of Palestinian agricultural wells in the Kufr Dan area, near Jenin, according to a statement by PWA on Monday.
The statement came following the Israeli military threat to destroy more wells in Jenin area if Palestinian farmers refuse to close down and destroy more on their own.
Attili described Israel’s demolition of Palestinian water infrastructure as a grave violation of basic Palestinian water rights, and said that it formed part of a broader campaign being waged by Israel to forcibly displace Palestinians from their land to facilitate ongoing illegal Israeli settlement expansion.
“Israel’s demolition of essential Palestinian water infrastructure is particularly concentrated in Area C and other areas of the West Bank that are under threat of confiscation for the purposes of illegal settlement expansion and the construction of Israel’s Wall. This is where some of the most vulnerable Palestinian communities live, and where the viability of the two-state solution is now being called into doubt,” Attili added.
He slammed the Israeli excuse of permits and ‘authorization’ as a way to veto and block essential Palestinian water projects and to stunt Palestinian development, stressing that Palestinians are not even close to being able to abstract the volumes of water allocated to them under previous agreements, largely because of Israel’s punitive permit regime.
Israel’s refusal to permit the construction of new Palestinian wells that are urgently needed, as well as its refusal to allow for the rehabilitation of old wells leaves some Palestinians with no choice but to drill wells without a permit, said the statement.
It estimated that water losses incurred as a result of Israeli restrictions on the rehabilitation of licensed Palestinian wells amounted to approximately 4 MCM/y.
Attili appealed to the international community to intervene to end Israel’s policy of deliberately targeting and destroying essential Palestinian water infrastructure, as well as he called on the U.S State Department, as chair of the Trilateral Water Committee, to act swiftly.
He further denied claims made by the Israeli Civil Administration that its latest destruction of agricultural wells in the Jenin area was carried out in coordination with PWA.
The statement came following the Israeli military threat to destroy more wells in Jenin area if Palestinian farmers refuse to close down and destroy more on their own.
Attili described Israel’s demolition of Palestinian water infrastructure as a grave violation of basic Palestinian water rights, and said that it formed part of a broader campaign being waged by Israel to forcibly displace Palestinians from their land to facilitate ongoing illegal Israeli settlement expansion.
“Israel’s demolition of essential Palestinian water infrastructure is particularly concentrated in Area C and other areas of the West Bank that are under threat of confiscation for the purposes of illegal settlement expansion and the construction of Israel’s Wall. This is where some of the most vulnerable Palestinian communities live, and where the viability of the two-state solution is now being called into doubt,” Attili added.
He slammed the Israeli excuse of permits and ‘authorization’ as a way to veto and block essential Palestinian water projects and to stunt Palestinian development, stressing that Palestinians are not even close to being able to abstract the volumes of water allocated to them under previous agreements, largely because of Israel’s punitive permit regime.
Israel’s refusal to permit the construction of new Palestinian wells that are urgently needed, as well as its refusal to allow for the rehabilitation of old wells leaves some Palestinians with no choice but to drill wells without a permit, said the statement.
It estimated that water losses incurred as a result of Israeli restrictions on the rehabilitation of licensed Palestinian wells amounted to approximately 4 MCM/y.
Attili appealed to the international community to intervene to end Israel’s policy of deliberately targeting and destroying essential Palestinian water infrastructure, as well as he called on the U.S State Department, as chair of the Trilateral Water Committee, to act swiftly.
He further denied claims made by the Israeli Civil Administration that its latest destruction of agricultural wells in the Jenin area was carried out in coordination with PWA.
26 aug 2012
IOF serves demolition notices in Jenin
Israeli occupation forces (IOF) served demolition notices to 15 farmers in west Jenin for demolishing their artesian wells, and a notice for a citizen to demolish his house under the pretext of being built in "C" zone without authorization.
Local sources said that IOF soldiers launched an extensive military campaign this afternoon in the village of Kfar Dan west of Jenin during which the infantry units swept the agricultural lands of the village.
Citizens stated that Israeli soldiers handed over Mahmoud Arqawi an order to demolish his house, currently under construction, claiming that it was being built in "C zone".
The local sources noted that there are nearly 100 artesian wells in the region used to irrigate thousands of dunums of land planted with vegetables and greenhouses, and that the IOF had previously destroyed 30 wells during the past two years in the same area.
Local sources said that IOF soldiers launched an extensive military campaign this afternoon in the village of Kfar Dan west of Jenin during which the infantry units swept the agricultural lands of the village.
Citizens stated that Israeli soldiers handed over Mahmoud Arqawi an order to demolish his house, currently under construction, claiming that it was being built in "C zone".
The local sources noted that there are nearly 100 artesian wells in the region used to irrigate thousands of dunums of land planted with vegetables and greenhouses, and that the IOF had previously destroyed 30 wells during the past two years in the same area.
22 aug 2012
Israeli Court Approves Well Destruction In Bethlehem
Bulldozer Destroying Palestinian Property
An Israeli military court approved, Tuesday, an order issued by the Israeli military demanding a Palestinian farmer from Al-Khader town, near Bethlehem, to demolish an irrigation well under the pretext that it is “close to the Annexation Wall”.
Ahmad Salah, coordinator of the National Committee Against the Wall and Settlements in Al-Khader, stated that the Beit El military court, near the central West Bank city of Ramallah, rejected an appeal filed by the well’s owner, Mahmoud Sbeih.
The well was dug by the Palestinian Agricultural Relief Committee, and was financed by Holland as part of a project to support Palestinian farmers in the area.
The Israeli court granted Sbeih two weeks to demolish his well; otherwise, the army will demolish it and send the hyped bill to the farmer.
Israel’s illegal Annexation Wall was built in a manner that allows easy settlement construction and expansion at the expense of privately-owned Palestinian lands and orchards.
In July 2004, 14 of the 15 Hague judges of the International Court ruled that the construction of the Annexation Wall in the West Bank violated international law and "constituted illegal annexation."
The court said Israel should stop the construction immediately, dismantle existing sections and compensate Palestinians harmed by its construction.
Israel ignored the ruling, considered it “irrelevant”, and went on to issue a 170-page response to the ruling protesting it, and claiming that “the court was looking at the wrong, outdated route”.
The Annexation Wall extends on more than 810 kilometers leading to the illegal annexation of thousands of Dunams of Palestinian lands, and isolates thousands of Dunams.
The route of the Wall is planned and implemented in a way that totally isolates several Palestinian villages, and enables the expansion of Israel’s illegal settlements in the West Bank, and in occupied East Jerusalem.
The Annexation Wall – Fact-sheet
An Israeli military court approved, Tuesday, an order issued by the Israeli military demanding a Palestinian farmer from Al-Khader town, near Bethlehem, to demolish an irrigation well under the pretext that it is “close to the Annexation Wall”.
Ahmad Salah, coordinator of the National Committee Against the Wall and Settlements in Al-Khader, stated that the Beit El military court, near the central West Bank city of Ramallah, rejected an appeal filed by the well’s owner, Mahmoud Sbeih.
The well was dug by the Palestinian Agricultural Relief Committee, and was financed by Holland as part of a project to support Palestinian farmers in the area.
The Israeli court granted Sbeih two weeks to demolish his well; otherwise, the army will demolish it and send the hyped bill to the farmer.
Israel’s illegal Annexation Wall was built in a manner that allows easy settlement construction and expansion at the expense of privately-owned Palestinian lands and orchards.
In July 2004, 14 of the 15 Hague judges of the International Court ruled that the construction of the Annexation Wall in the West Bank violated international law and "constituted illegal annexation."
The court said Israel should stop the construction immediately, dismantle existing sections and compensate Palestinians harmed by its construction.
Israel ignored the ruling, considered it “irrelevant”, and went on to issue a 170-page response to the ruling protesting it, and claiming that “the court was looking at the wrong, outdated route”.
The Annexation Wall extends on more than 810 kilometers leading to the illegal annexation of thousands of Dunams of Palestinian lands, and isolates thousands of Dunams.
The route of the Wall is planned and implemented in a way that totally isolates several Palestinian villages, and enables the expansion of Israel’s illegal settlements in the West Bank, and in occupied East Jerusalem.
The Annexation Wall – Fact-sheet
15 aug 2012
Settlers Empty Palestinian Well, Flood Farmlands
A group of extremist Israeli settlers used electric pumps to empty a Palestinian irrigation well and flooded Palestinian farmlands in as-Seer area, east of Sa’ir town, near the southern West Bank city of Hebron.
Resident Yassin Mohammad ash-Shalalda, told the Land Research Center that settlers of Esfir and Mitzad settlements carried out their attack on Tuesday at night. The settlers reportedly used a motor pump to empty the well and flooded the nearby Palestinian farmlands.
He added that several hundred cubic meters of land were wasted in the attack, and that the residents use this water for both irrigation and as a source of drinking water for their livestock.
Ash-Shalalda further stated that the residents filed a complaint to the Israeli police in Keryat Arba’ settlement in Hebron, but are not hopeful that there will be any affirmative action by the police due to the fact that numerous previous assaults, carried out by the settlers, were never investigated
The area in question is subject to frequent attacks especially since the settlers of both the illegal settlements of Mitzad and Esfir have been trying to expand their colonies at the expense of privately-owned Palestinian lands. The two outposts were also built on privately-owned Palestinian land.
Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories, including in and around occupied East Jerusalem, are illegal under international law and the Fourth Geneva Convention to which Israel is a signatory.
Israel’s settlements in the West Bank are turning Palestinian cities, towns and villages into isolated ghettoes, while Israel and the extremist settlers continue to focus on fertile Palestinian lands, mainly in the Jordan Valley. Most Israeli settlements and outposts are also built on hilltops surrounding different parts of the occupied West Bank.
Resident Yassin Mohammad ash-Shalalda, told the Land Research Center that settlers of Esfir and Mitzad settlements carried out their attack on Tuesday at night. The settlers reportedly used a motor pump to empty the well and flooded the nearby Palestinian farmlands.
He added that several hundred cubic meters of land were wasted in the attack, and that the residents use this water for both irrigation and as a source of drinking water for their livestock.
Ash-Shalalda further stated that the residents filed a complaint to the Israeli police in Keryat Arba’ settlement in Hebron, but are not hopeful that there will be any affirmative action by the police due to the fact that numerous previous assaults, carried out by the settlers, were never investigated
The area in question is subject to frequent attacks especially since the settlers of both the illegal settlements of Mitzad and Esfir have been trying to expand their colonies at the expense of privately-owned Palestinian lands. The two outposts were also built on privately-owned Palestinian land.
Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories, including in and around occupied East Jerusalem, are illegal under international law and the Fourth Geneva Convention to which Israel is a signatory.
Israel’s settlements in the West Bank are turning Palestinian cities, towns and villages into isolated ghettoes, while Israel and the extremist settlers continue to focus on fertile Palestinian lands, mainly in the Jordan Valley. Most Israeli settlements and outposts are also built on hilltops surrounding different parts of the occupied West Bank.
IOF fills up wells and arrests citizens in Jenin
Israeli occupation forces (IOF) demolished on Wednesday three artesian wells, east of Jenin, and launched extensive sweeps searching for water wells in the area.
Eyewitnesses told PIC's reporter that an army bulldozer filled up three wells belonging to citizens Khalid Omar Yassin, Abdel-Moneim Daraghmeh, and Yasser Abu Zahra.
IOF also interrogated farmers who were in the area about other wells' locations, warning that they will fill up all the wells, which they called "unauthorized".
Citizens have been forced to dig artesian wells, drilling each of which costs about 50 thousand dollars, in order to find water for irrigation and drinking.
Meanwhile, local sources said that IOF arrested last night a youth from Jenin while passing through the Shafi Shomron checkpoint, near Nablus, and transferred him to an unknown destination.
They had also stormed a village in the west of Jenin and arrested Rafat Nassar, 19, and transferred him to the neighboring Salem military camp.
Eyewitnesses told PIC's reporter that an army bulldozer filled up three wells belonging to citizens Khalid Omar Yassin, Abdel-Moneim Daraghmeh, and Yasser Abu Zahra.
IOF also interrogated farmers who were in the area about other wells' locations, warning that they will fill up all the wells, which they called "unauthorized".
Citizens have been forced to dig artesian wells, drilling each of which costs about 50 thousand dollars, in order to find water for irrigation and drinking.
Meanwhile, local sources said that IOF arrested last night a youth from Jenin while passing through the Shafi Shomron checkpoint, near Nablus, and transferred him to an unknown destination.
They had also stormed a village in the west of Jenin and arrested Rafat Nassar, 19, and transferred him to the neighboring Salem military camp.
14 aug 2012
Israeli Occupation Causes Chronic Water Shortage in the West Bank
Consider this: Two third of the earth’s surface consist of water. 2.5% of that is drinking water, of which just one third is amenable to us.
In the European Union for example there are 8,500 liters per day available for each citizen. That makes 2.3 million liters per year. Divergent climatic circumstances, the climate change, varying levels of runoffs and an unequal distribution of water resources are reasons for more frequently cases of water shortage in some parts of Europe.
This is also problem that confronts many areas in the Middle East.
However, the problems facing the Palestinians in the West Bank go way beyond this.
The annual renewable amount of groundwater in the West Bank is 669 million cubic meters. In addition to that there is around 215 million cubic meters (MCM) of runoff water available. In the interim convention about the West Bank and the Gaza Strip from 1995, an annual water abstraction of 118 MCM for the West Bank was fixed, while 94 MCM are alone used for industry and agriculture. Furthermore there are 54 MCM more purchased by the Israeli National Water Company called Mekorot.
The bottom line is that there are 148 MCM of water available to the people living in the West Bank. That means just around 22% of the entire water sources in the West Bank at a distribution of 65 liters per capita per day. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends 100 liters per person per day. So there is a serious deficit.
In contrast an Israeli settler’s allocation is nearly 300 liters per day. But this water is mainly taken from Palestinian resources as Mekorot does. Mekorot extracts groundwater from the West Bank to sell to the Palestinians when they are running out of the water provided by the government.
One possible way to compensate for the lack of water is to build wells or rain water cisterns, which are subject to the strict regulations of the Israeli government. Such regulations maintain that the wells mustn’t reach deeper than 150 meters while Israeli settlers are allowed to dig wells reaching a depth of 600 meters. Since the groundwater level runs low continuously due to Israel’s high water consumption, wells with a depth of 150 meters will not serve their purpose for very long and deeper digging is needed. Since deeper digging is forbidden this seriously hampers the effectiveness of wells as sources of water.
This is all assuming that Palestinians are granted permission to dig a well in the first place. Permits for digging wells in Areas A and B are difficult to get and in Zone C they are impossible to get because building anything in those areas is forbidden being under Israeli military control.
A farm called “Tent of Nations”, which was built in 1916, is located in Zone C. Today it is surrounded by five Israeli settlements and the owners are deeply troubled by the demolition orders placed on their cisterns. They have fought against these cases in court and are required to fight continuously merely for the existence of their farm to remain.
In light of this they are forced to deal with the water shortage in inventive ways, since their only water resource is rainwater that falls only during the winter months, which they save in the cisterns.
Asked how they ensure that the limited water they have access to during the year one lasts throughout one of the volunteer workers said that they have to “Save water, catch water, recycle water.”
The owner Daud went further, “There are some easy ways like covering a freshly watered spot with dry earth to avoid evaporation. Furthermore we mostly plant trees that don’t need a huge amount of water like almond trees, for example. Everything that needs more water is planted around the showers. We also built a compost toilet and at the moment I’m working on a natural waste water sewage plant, in which the sewage water is filtered through sand and stones, so you can use it for irrigation.”
Wastewater usage is a further problem influencing the water supply in whole the West Bank. According to the Palestinian Water Authority (PWA) only 31% of all households in the West Bank are connected with the sewage water system. There are just four water treatment plants and one modern sewage treatment plant. Needless to say this lack of infrastructure creates serious problems.
The remaining wastewater is either led into the Wadis or into the sea of Gaza. According to the NGO Friends of Earth Middle East (foeme) the untreated wastewater from the Israeli settlements is allowed to flow directly onto the surrounding natural environment or into the Jordan River.
Since Israel extracts its water from the upper Jordan basin there is very little water available for Palestinians and due to Israeli wastewater practices almost none of it is clean.
Compounding this problem the sewage waste seeping into the environment further contaminates the ground water.
The case of Bethlehem is instructive. The city of Bethlehem is mainly supplied by groundwater, unless residents have additional rainwater cisterns. Bethlehem shows, that in addition to the problems caused by the occupation and the climate with low precipitation, there are also technical difficulties in the West Bank in ensuring adequate water distribution.
The system works as follows:
The Bethlehem Water Authority (BWA) gets their order about the maximum amount of water that can be extracted from a certain source, from the PWA. The water level of that source is measured and if it is at a certain level the BWA is allowed to open the pipeline of this source. The water runs to the households where it is saved in water tanks. In Bethlehem this happens roughly every 10 to 15 days.
The problem here is that Bethlehem and its suburbs are divided into four areas, which are all each supplied by separate sources. Since the water sources have different capacities and the pipelines of the four areas respectively are not connected with each other not every area gets the same amount of water or received water in the same time period.
At al-Aida refugee camp in Bethlehem the access to water is even more difficult. There most of the houses have an extra house pump to compensate for the either inadequate existing infrastructure or the complete lack of infrastructure at all.
That means when the water line to the camp is opened, the people have to switch on their house own pumps so that the water can reach their tanks.
According to an inhabitant of the camp the line is usually opened at night, but nobody tells the people the date on which it will be opened. So, when the people expect the water to come they have to stay awake and listen at their water line. If they hear water running in it they must rush to turn on their pumps in order not to miss the window of opportunity when the line of water is running.
Failure to do this means they miss out.
The location of the camp and the quality of the old water system combine to cause further problems for inhabitants of the Aida camp. The camp is located on a hillside and the pumps for the lines are too weak to transport the water to the buildings furthest up the hills. The people living in those houses have to get their water from a collection tank at the entrance of the camp and carry it home in canisters.
The BWA and the PWA have said that besides the water shortage and the problems caused by the occupation there are also internal difficulties inhibiting the distribution of water, chief among them are how to design and fund a new system that replaces the old one.
The lack of local investor capital and the general instability in both the public and private sector in Palestine means that any infrastructural projects most likely will have to be funded by foreign capital. This would mean necessarily taking on more debt and as it is the Palestinian economy is struggling to stay afloat.
The occupation and the conditions that come with it mean that there is one burning issue that is never addressed. Both the PWA and the BWA have said that there can be no sustainability under occupation. Farming is not sustainable long term because of the inefficient, increasingly stressed and diminishing water supply, as well as the ongoing dispassion of land.
Given that the immediate conditions of the occupation demand political action there is no time or space for many to think about environmental sustainability.
The water shortage in Palestine poses serious challenges for daily life and it will continue to get worse. In Gaza agriculture is barely possible under hard circumstances due to the shrinking ground water level and contaminated water from the sea.
This is in fact in line with Israeli policy aims. Wikileaks exposed cables from Israeli diplomats in which it was exposed that the intention of the blockade on Gaza was to keep the Palestinian economy on the verge of collapse without quite pushing it over the edge. It is the restrictions on movement, the bombing of infrastructure and the blockade, which have created an environment that is not sustainable in the long term.
The river Jordan is great diminished also and the water level of the Dead Sea shrinks rapidly. The situation today should be cause for grave concern amidst those in the International community and for Israel to consider its water policy for reasons of long-term self-survival and of fair treatment of the Palestinians.
In the European Union for example there are 8,500 liters per day available for each citizen. That makes 2.3 million liters per year. Divergent climatic circumstances, the climate change, varying levels of runoffs and an unequal distribution of water resources are reasons for more frequently cases of water shortage in some parts of Europe.
This is also problem that confronts many areas in the Middle East.
However, the problems facing the Palestinians in the West Bank go way beyond this.
The annual renewable amount of groundwater in the West Bank is 669 million cubic meters. In addition to that there is around 215 million cubic meters (MCM) of runoff water available. In the interim convention about the West Bank and the Gaza Strip from 1995, an annual water abstraction of 118 MCM for the West Bank was fixed, while 94 MCM are alone used for industry and agriculture. Furthermore there are 54 MCM more purchased by the Israeli National Water Company called Mekorot.
The bottom line is that there are 148 MCM of water available to the people living in the West Bank. That means just around 22% of the entire water sources in the West Bank at a distribution of 65 liters per capita per day. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends 100 liters per person per day. So there is a serious deficit.
In contrast an Israeli settler’s allocation is nearly 300 liters per day. But this water is mainly taken from Palestinian resources as Mekorot does. Mekorot extracts groundwater from the West Bank to sell to the Palestinians when they are running out of the water provided by the government.
One possible way to compensate for the lack of water is to build wells or rain water cisterns, which are subject to the strict regulations of the Israeli government. Such regulations maintain that the wells mustn’t reach deeper than 150 meters while Israeli settlers are allowed to dig wells reaching a depth of 600 meters. Since the groundwater level runs low continuously due to Israel’s high water consumption, wells with a depth of 150 meters will not serve their purpose for very long and deeper digging is needed. Since deeper digging is forbidden this seriously hampers the effectiveness of wells as sources of water.
This is all assuming that Palestinians are granted permission to dig a well in the first place. Permits for digging wells in Areas A and B are difficult to get and in Zone C they are impossible to get because building anything in those areas is forbidden being under Israeli military control.
A farm called “Tent of Nations”, which was built in 1916, is located in Zone C. Today it is surrounded by five Israeli settlements and the owners are deeply troubled by the demolition orders placed on their cisterns. They have fought against these cases in court and are required to fight continuously merely for the existence of their farm to remain.
In light of this they are forced to deal with the water shortage in inventive ways, since their only water resource is rainwater that falls only during the winter months, which they save in the cisterns.
Asked how they ensure that the limited water they have access to during the year one lasts throughout one of the volunteer workers said that they have to “Save water, catch water, recycle water.”
The owner Daud went further, “There are some easy ways like covering a freshly watered spot with dry earth to avoid evaporation. Furthermore we mostly plant trees that don’t need a huge amount of water like almond trees, for example. Everything that needs more water is planted around the showers. We also built a compost toilet and at the moment I’m working on a natural waste water sewage plant, in which the sewage water is filtered through sand and stones, so you can use it for irrigation.”
Wastewater usage is a further problem influencing the water supply in whole the West Bank. According to the Palestinian Water Authority (PWA) only 31% of all households in the West Bank are connected with the sewage water system. There are just four water treatment plants and one modern sewage treatment plant. Needless to say this lack of infrastructure creates serious problems.
The remaining wastewater is either led into the Wadis or into the sea of Gaza. According to the NGO Friends of Earth Middle East (foeme) the untreated wastewater from the Israeli settlements is allowed to flow directly onto the surrounding natural environment or into the Jordan River.
Since Israel extracts its water from the upper Jordan basin there is very little water available for Palestinians and due to Israeli wastewater practices almost none of it is clean.
Compounding this problem the sewage waste seeping into the environment further contaminates the ground water.
The case of Bethlehem is instructive. The city of Bethlehem is mainly supplied by groundwater, unless residents have additional rainwater cisterns. Bethlehem shows, that in addition to the problems caused by the occupation and the climate with low precipitation, there are also technical difficulties in the West Bank in ensuring adequate water distribution.
The system works as follows:
The Bethlehem Water Authority (BWA) gets their order about the maximum amount of water that can be extracted from a certain source, from the PWA. The water level of that source is measured and if it is at a certain level the BWA is allowed to open the pipeline of this source. The water runs to the households where it is saved in water tanks. In Bethlehem this happens roughly every 10 to 15 days.
The problem here is that Bethlehem and its suburbs are divided into four areas, which are all each supplied by separate sources. Since the water sources have different capacities and the pipelines of the four areas respectively are not connected with each other not every area gets the same amount of water or received water in the same time period.
At al-Aida refugee camp in Bethlehem the access to water is even more difficult. There most of the houses have an extra house pump to compensate for the either inadequate existing infrastructure or the complete lack of infrastructure at all.
That means when the water line to the camp is opened, the people have to switch on their house own pumps so that the water can reach their tanks.
According to an inhabitant of the camp the line is usually opened at night, but nobody tells the people the date on which it will be opened. So, when the people expect the water to come they have to stay awake and listen at their water line. If they hear water running in it they must rush to turn on their pumps in order not to miss the window of opportunity when the line of water is running.
Failure to do this means they miss out.
The location of the camp and the quality of the old water system combine to cause further problems for inhabitants of the Aida camp. The camp is located on a hillside and the pumps for the lines are too weak to transport the water to the buildings furthest up the hills. The people living in those houses have to get their water from a collection tank at the entrance of the camp and carry it home in canisters.
The BWA and the PWA have said that besides the water shortage and the problems caused by the occupation there are also internal difficulties inhibiting the distribution of water, chief among them are how to design and fund a new system that replaces the old one.
The lack of local investor capital and the general instability in both the public and private sector in Palestine means that any infrastructural projects most likely will have to be funded by foreign capital. This would mean necessarily taking on more debt and as it is the Palestinian economy is struggling to stay afloat.
The occupation and the conditions that come with it mean that there is one burning issue that is never addressed. Both the PWA and the BWA have said that there can be no sustainability under occupation. Farming is not sustainable long term because of the inefficient, increasingly stressed and diminishing water supply, as well as the ongoing dispassion of land.
Given that the immediate conditions of the occupation demand political action there is no time or space for many to think about environmental sustainability.
The water shortage in Palestine poses serious challenges for daily life and it will continue to get worse. In Gaza agriculture is barely possible under hard circumstances due to the shrinking ground water level and contaminated water from the sea.
This is in fact in line with Israeli policy aims. Wikileaks exposed cables from Israeli diplomats in which it was exposed that the intention of the blockade on Gaza was to keep the Palestinian economy on the verge of collapse without quite pushing it over the edge. It is the restrictions on movement, the bombing of infrastructure and the blockade, which have created an environment that is not sustainable in the long term.
The river Jordan is great diminished also and the water level of the Dead Sea shrinks rapidly. The situation today should be cause for grave concern amidst those in the International community and for Israel to consider its water policy for reasons of long-term self-survival and of fair treatment of the Palestinians.
13 aug 2012
Occupation allows settlers to use water pond registered as Islamic Waqf
The Israeli occupation army allowed Jewish settlers to use a water pond in the area of Tel Rumeida, in the center of al-Khalil province, although it is registered as an Islamic endowment.
Youth against Settlement group said in a statement on Sunday that the occupation army issued a decision preventing Palestinians from using the new spring of water in Tel Rumeida during Fridays and Saturdays, while allowing the settlers to daily use it without any restrictions.
For his part, the Director of Endowments in al-Khalil, Zaid Al-Jabari asserted in press statements that the new spring of water and water ponds in Tel Rumeida have been registered as Islamic endowments.
He also noted that the new spring of water, which has an area of 55 square meters, has been exposed to continuous attacks as the settlers have been trying to control it through construction and expansion processes for a long time.
Youth against Settlement group said in a statement on Sunday that the occupation army issued a decision preventing Palestinians from using the new spring of water in Tel Rumeida during Fridays and Saturdays, while allowing the settlers to daily use it without any restrictions.
For his part, the Director of Endowments in al-Khalil, Zaid Al-Jabari asserted in press statements that the new spring of water and water ponds in Tel Rumeida have been registered as Islamic endowments.
He also noted that the new spring of water, which has an area of 55 square meters, has been exposed to continuous attacks as the settlers have been trying to control it through construction and expansion processes for a long time.
3 aug 2012
Israel punishing Gazans collectively for electing Hamas: Gaza official
Gaza Ministry of Health spokesman Ashraf al-Qedra says Palestinians in the Gaza Strip are being subjected to Israeli collective punishment, Press TV reports.
Qedra said water pollution levels in the coastal enclave have reached alarming levels after years of Israeli blockade.
Infants and children are the worst hit by water pollution, where acute cases of diarrhea among other intestinal ailments are widespread among the Gazan children.
Qedra said water pollution levels in the coastal enclave have reached alarming levels after years of Israeli blockade.
Infants and children are the worst hit by water pollution, where acute cases of diarrhea among other intestinal ailments are widespread among the Gazan children.
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“Our doctors are having a hard time dealing with many cases of [infected] children… Israel’s violating the Gazans’ right to live a healthy life and punishing them for democratically electing the Hamas movement,” he told Press TV.
According to the United Nations, at least 90 percent of the coastal enclave’s water supplies are unsafe to drink. Nitrate and chloride levels in Gaza water, which are one of the highest in the world and have continued to rise, pose serious health risks throughout the blockaded territory. Meanwhile, during the war on Gaza at the turn of 2009, Israeli forces targeted sewage treatment plants which caused raw sewage to seep into the aquifer and contaminate it. Israel also prevents desalination and water treatment equipment from reaching Gaza. The Gaza Strip has been blockaded since 2007, which is a situation that has caused a decline in the standard of living, unprecedented levels of unemployment, and unrelenting poverty. |
18 july 2012
Israel Issues Demolition Order on Two Water Cisterns
On Tuesday, the Israeli army raided Al Qanoub area in Sa'ir, eastern Hebron and issued a demolition order on two cisterns used to irrigate land for the benefit of twenty people, of whom more than half are children.
One cistern owned by Basem and Omar al-Shalaldais is used to irrigate farmland of more than 10 dunums containing 210 seedlings.
The other cistern owned by the family of Shaher al Shalalda's is used to water 5 dunums of land planted with 185 fruit tree seedlings.
The two cisterns were built with the aid of the Improving Livelihood in the Occupied Palestinian Territories Program funded by the Netherlands Representative Office.
Palestinians are rarely issued with planning permission to build on their own land in the occupied territories, while illegal Israeli settlements are free to expand without restriction.
One cistern owned by Basem and Omar al-Shalaldais is used to irrigate farmland of more than 10 dunums containing 210 seedlings.
The other cistern owned by the family of Shaher al Shalalda's is used to water 5 dunums of land planted with 185 fruit tree seedlings.
The two cisterns were built with the aid of the Improving Livelihood in the Occupied Palestinian Territories Program funded by the Netherlands Representative Office.
Palestinians are rarely issued with planning permission to build on their own land in the occupied territories, while illegal Israeli settlements are free to expand without restriction.
Prime Minister, Donors Sign Agreement on Water Sector
Prime Minister Salam Fayyad Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding with representatives of several donor countries and institutions to organize work in the water and waste water sector.
The signing donors were the European Union, Finland, Germany, Japan, Norway, Span, Austria, the World Bank, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and The French Agency for Development (AFD).
Fayyad, during the signing ceremony at the Cabinet in Ramallah, stressed the importance of the agreement to building an institutional framework that would address the challenges the water sector face.
The memorandum of understanding will help in achieving long-term reforms in the water sector, improving the level of water and sewage service in the Palestinian Territory, and in facing the Israeli policy and control over Palestinian land and water, especially in area C, under the Israeli military and civil administration.
Fayyad thanked the donors for their continuous support to the Palestinian people and Authority, while the donors stressed their commitment to support the Palestinian Authority in building state institutions and infrastructure.
The signing donors were the European Union, Finland, Germany, Japan, Norway, Span, Austria, the World Bank, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and The French Agency for Development (AFD).
Fayyad, during the signing ceremony at the Cabinet in Ramallah, stressed the importance of the agreement to building an institutional framework that would address the challenges the water sector face.
The memorandum of understanding will help in achieving long-term reforms in the water sector, improving the level of water and sewage service in the Palestinian Territory, and in facing the Israeli policy and control over Palestinian land and water, especially in area C, under the Israeli military and civil administration.
Fayyad thanked the donors for their continuous support to the Palestinian people and Authority, while the donors stressed their commitment to support the Palestinian Authority in building state institutions and infrastructure.
11 july 2012
Tens of thousands of Palestinians suffer from water supply disruptions in East Jerusalem
Water tanks on the roofs of East Jerusalem houses
Those affected are all Jerusalem residents with blue, Israeli-issued identity cards who live on either side of the separation fence.
For the past month the water supply to tens of thousands of Palestinian homes in East Jerusalem has been sporadic, at times no more than two days a week. The problem affects communities connected to the city water system as well as ones that receive their water from the Palestinian Authority.
Those affected are all Jerusalem residents with blue, Israeli-issued identity cards who live on either side of the separation fence.
The problem is predominantly on the Palestinian side of the fence in the northern Jerusalem neighborhoods of Ras Khamis, Ras Shahada and Hashalom as well as the Shoafat refugee camp. Residents of these communities say that for the past few weeks they have had a regular water supply only two to three days a week. Sometimes there is water only at night, and usually the water pressure is quite low. Water to these neighborhoods is supplied by Gihon, the Jerusalem municipality's water corporation.
Residents say the problem has led to disputes over water use and connections to the water supply. Two people sustained gunshot wounds during one dispute between two families that escalated about two weeks ago. Residents pelted the Border Police officers who tried to separate the combatants with rocks and Molotov cocktails.
Practically every family in the affected area has spent thousands of shekels on a rooftop cistern and pump so they can store water when the faucets are running for later use.
"We've started buying bottled water, and people have stopped showering. We used to bathe the kids every day, now it's once a week," said Jamil Sanduqa, the head of the Ras Khamis residents' committee.
Gihon claims the problem is the result of people illegally tapping into the water system.
"Why is it my problem that people are stealing water?" Sanduqa said, adding, "They have to solve the problem and not disrupt the lives of 70,000 residents."
It would appear that the 45 years that have passed since the city's unification were not enough time for the authorities to connect all of East Jerusalem's residents to the municipal water system. Thousands of them, mainly in the northern neighborhoods of Kafr Aqab, on the Palestinian side of the fence, but also in Beit Hanina, on the Israeli side, receive their water supply from El Bireh, near Ramallah. They too are experiencing disruptions to their water supply. They attribute the problem to the overall water shortage in the Palestinian Authority, which relies on the water allocations supplied to it by Israel.
On Monday, attorney Nisreen Alyan of the Association of Civil Rights in Israel sent a letter to the head of Gihon demanding a resolution of the water supply problem in the areas under the municipal corporation's jurisdiction.
"The right to water is a basic right," says Alyan. "It is incumbent on the authorities that govern the area to supply this basic right, especially during the summer. The disregard of the fact that entire neighborhoods are not linked to the water network is unacceptable."
In a response, Gihon said: "There is a widespread phenomenon of water theft in this area, which we have been warning the Water Authority about for a very long time. At the same time, in the wake of the request by ACRI regarding the problem in the Shoafat refugee camp, it was agreed to hold a meeting with representatives of the association, in order to find creative ways to try to solve the problems. Gihon is continuously and individually dealing with consumers who report all sorts of problems with service, irrespective of their geographic location."
Those affected are all Jerusalem residents with blue, Israeli-issued identity cards who live on either side of the separation fence.
For the past month the water supply to tens of thousands of Palestinian homes in East Jerusalem has been sporadic, at times no more than two days a week. The problem affects communities connected to the city water system as well as ones that receive their water from the Palestinian Authority.
Those affected are all Jerusalem residents with blue, Israeli-issued identity cards who live on either side of the separation fence.
The problem is predominantly on the Palestinian side of the fence in the northern Jerusalem neighborhoods of Ras Khamis, Ras Shahada and Hashalom as well as the Shoafat refugee camp. Residents of these communities say that for the past few weeks they have had a regular water supply only two to three days a week. Sometimes there is water only at night, and usually the water pressure is quite low. Water to these neighborhoods is supplied by Gihon, the Jerusalem municipality's water corporation.
Residents say the problem has led to disputes over water use and connections to the water supply. Two people sustained gunshot wounds during one dispute between two families that escalated about two weeks ago. Residents pelted the Border Police officers who tried to separate the combatants with rocks and Molotov cocktails.
Practically every family in the affected area has spent thousands of shekels on a rooftop cistern and pump so they can store water when the faucets are running for later use.
"We've started buying bottled water, and people have stopped showering. We used to bathe the kids every day, now it's once a week," said Jamil Sanduqa, the head of the Ras Khamis residents' committee.
Gihon claims the problem is the result of people illegally tapping into the water system.
"Why is it my problem that people are stealing water?" Sanduqa said, adding, "They have to solve the problem and not disrupt the lives of 70,000 residents."
It would appear that the 45 years that have passed since the city's unification were not enough time for the authorities to connect all of East Jerusalem's residents to the municipal water system. Thousands of them, mainly in the northern neighborhoods of Kafr Aqab, on the Palestinian side of the fence, but also in Beit Hanina, on the Israeli side, receive their water supply from El Bireh, near Ramallah. They too are experiencing disruptions to their water supply. They attribute the problem to the overall water shortage in the Palestinian Authority, which relies on the water allocations supplied to it by Israel.
On Monday, attorney Nisreen Alyan of the Association of Civil Rights in Israel sent a letter to the head of Gihon demanding a resolution of the water supply problem in the areas under the municipal corporation's jurisdiction.
"The right to water is a basic right," says Alyan. "It is incumbent on the authorities that govern the area to supply this basic right, especially during the summer. The disregard of the fact that entire neighborhoods are not linked to the water network is unacceptable."
In a response, Gihon said: "There is a widespread phenomenon of water theft in this area, which we have been warning the Water Authority about for a very long time. At the same time, in the wake of the request by ACRI regarding the problem in the Shoafat refugee camp, it was agreed to hold a meeting with representatives of the association, in order to find creative ways to try to solve the problems. Gihon is continuously and individually dealing with consumers who report all sorts of problems with service, irrespective of their geographic location."
9 july 2012
Water Torture: Gideon Levy says ‘water is for Jews only’ in the Jordan Valley
IDF confiscates water containers from Palestinians and Bedouins in Jordan Valley -- Avi is an inspection coordinator for the "Civil Administration" - the occupation regime, to speak without euphemisms. Presumably Avi likes his job. Maybe he's even proud of it.
He doesn't bother mentioning his last name in the forms he signs. Why should he? His ornate "Avi" signature is sufficient to carry out his diktats. And Avi's are among the most brutal and inhumane diktats ever to be imposed in these parts. Avi confiscates water containers that serve hundreds of Palestinian and Bedouin families living in the Jordan Valley.
The containers are these people's only water source. In recent weeks, Avi has confiscated about a dozen containers, leaving dozens of families with children in the horrific Jordan Valley heat, to go thirsty. The forms he takes pains to complete, in spiffy style, say: "There is reason to suspect they used the above merchandise for carrying out an offense." Avi's bosses claim the "offense" is stealing water from a pipe.
This is why the containers are seized - with no inquiry, no trial. Welcome to the land of lawlessness and evil. Welcome to the land of apartheid. Israel does not permit thousands of these wretched people to hook up to the water pipes. This water is for Jews only.
He doesn't bother mentioning his last name in the forms he signs. Why should he? His ornate "Avi" signature is sufficient to carry out his diktats. And Avi's are among the most brutal and inhumane diktats ever to be imposed in these parts. Avi confiscates water containers that serve hundreds of Palestinian and Bedouin families living in the Jordan Valley.
The containers are these people's only water source. In recent weeks, Avi has confiscated about a dozen containers, leaving dozens of families with children in the horrific Jordan Valley heat, to go thirsty. The forms he takes pains to complete, in spiffy style, say: "There is reason to suspect they used the above merchandise for carrying out an offense." Avi's bosses claim the "offense" is stealing water from a pipe.
This is why the containers are seized - with no inquiry, no trial. Welcome to the land of lawlessness and evil. Welcome to the land of apartheid. Israel does not permit thousands of these wretched people to hook up to the water pipes. This water is for Jews only.
1 july 2012
Thirsting for Justice Campaign Summer Challenge: Live on 24 liters of water for 24 hours
The Thirsting for Justice Campaign calls on supporters worldwide to sign-up to its summer challenge by living on 24 liters of water for 24 hours, a reality faced by many Palestinians in the West Bank today, particularly during the summer, when Israeli national water company Mekorot reduces water supplies.
This amount of water has to be enough for drinking, cooking, washing and hygiene.
Follow these 3 simple steps:
Sign-up on [email protected] - we will post you a resource pack that will help you inform those around you about why you’re taking this challenge
Tell us about your experiences with the summer challenge. Be creative! Write us a small article, take a photo or send us a video blog.
Make an action in support of Palestinian rights. Write to your MP about Israeli violations of Palestinian rights to water and sanitation, share one of these Thirsting for Justice videos on your facebook wall or twitter, distribute the Summer Challenge action card and our leaflets to your family and friends.
The action call will run between the 1st of July 2012 to 15th of September 2012, so you can sign-up at anytime within this period.
Why I am taking part in this challenge
-- There is enough water to go around in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, but discriminatory laws mean that many Palestinians are left with a trickle.
-- As an Occupying Power, the Israeli government is responsible under International Humanitarian Law for the well-being of Palestinians, including ensuring that they have adequate water supply. Even though it controls all sources of fresh water in the West Bank the Israeli government has neglected this obligation.·
-- Some Palestinian communities live with as little as 20 liters of water per person a day. This is barely enough water for their basic needs.
-- Taps often run dry for several weeks during the summer in Palestinian cities like Bethlehem. Residents are forced to buy expensive water from private vendors.
-- Communities depending on tankered water pay up to 4 times more for every litre than those connected to the network, adding strain to their income.
-- Some communities depend on rainwater collection cisterns, often paid for with international aid, for their water. In 2011, the Israeli army destroyed on average almost three cisterns a month, and since then the rate of these demolitions has been increasing.
In contrast:
-- About half a million Israelis live in illegal settlements located beside thirsty Palestinian communities. They have unrestricted access to water, well-watered lawns and swimming pools.
-- Israeli settlers in settlements like Ro’I in the West Bank’s Jordan Valley use 20 times as much water as the most water-deprived Palestinians.
Visit the palsummerchallenge.org live blog where we will post your testimonies
Follow us on twitter @thirsty4justice
Like our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/ThirstingForJustice
This amount of water has to be enough for drinking, cooking, washing and hygiene.
Follow these 3 simple steps:
Sign-up on [email protected] - we will post you a resource pack that will help you inform those around you about why you’re taking this challenge
Tell us about your experiences with the summer challenge. Be creative! Write us a small article, take a photo or send us a video blog.
Make an action in support of Palestinian rights. Write to your MP about Israeli violations of Palestinian rights to water and sanitation, share one of these Thirsting for Justice videos on your facebook wall or twitter, distribute the Summer Challenge action card and our leaflets to your family and friends.
The action call will run between the 1st of July 2012 to 15th of September 2012, so you can sign-up at anytime within this period.
Why I am taking part in this challenge
-- There is enough water to go around in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, but discriminatory laws mean that many Palestinians are left with a trickle.
-- As an Occupying Power, the Israeli government is responsible under International Humanitarian Law for the well-being of Palestinians, including ensuring that they have adequate water supply. Even though it controls all sources of fresh water in the West Bank the Israeli government has neglected this obligation.·
-- Some Palestinian communities live with as little as 20 liters of water per person a day. This is barely enough water for their basic needs.
-- Taps often run dry for several weeks during the summer in Palestinian cities like Bethlehem. Residents are forced to buy expensive water from private vendors.
-- Communities depending on tankered water pay up to 4 times more for every litre than those connected to the network, adding strain to their income.
-- Some communities depend on rainwater collection cisterns, often paid for with international aid, for their water. In 2011, the Israeli army destroyed on average almost three cisterns a month, and since then the rate of these demolitions has been increasing.
In contrast:
-- About half a million Israelis live in illegal settlements located beside thirsty Palestinian communities. They have unrestricted access to water, well-watered lawns and swimming pools.
-- Israeli settlers in settlements like Ro’I in the West Bank’s Jordan Valley use 20 times as much water as the most water-deprived Palestinians.
Visit the palsummerchallenge.org live blog where we will post your testimonies
Follow us on twitter @thirsty4justice
Like our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/ThirstingForJustice