26 june 2014
The popular committee against the siege confirmed that Israel's illegal and immoral restrictions have deepened the crisis in the besieged strip of Gaza, where 70 percent of Gaza population lives below the poverty line.
In its new report issued on Tuesday, the Popular Committee stated that more than one million Palestinian depend on aid supplies provided by international, Arab and Islamic humanitarian institutions that do not meet their needs.
The poverty rate has increased dramatically to reach 50 percent, while the daily average per capita income in the Gaza Strip is estimated at two dollars, 40 times less than Israeli income rate.
The report added that fuel and power crises are the most difficult problems witnessing in the besieged strip. Closing Karem Abu Salem crossing for only one day could lead to a significant fuel crisis in addition to 8-12 hours of power cuts each day, according to the report.
The power crisis has significantly affected public services in hospitals and schools in addition to the shutdown of several factories.
The report pointed out that Israeli occupation has deliberately targeted Gaza infrastructure and construction sector, which led to heavy economic losses.
Israeli authorities have banned the entry of construction materials, which led to the stop of construction projects estimated at 500 million dollars in light of the acute housing crisis in the strip.
In 2006, 4000 tons of cements, 1500 tons of steel, and 6000 tons of gravel were daily allowed to pass through Karem Abu Salem crossing, however; Israeli authorities have completely banned the entry of construction materials.
The report said that 80 percent of factories are partially or completely stopped in Gaza Strip due to the continued Israeli ban on construction materials’ access, which led to significant increase in unemployment rate.
On the other hand, the report said that 95 percent of Gaza water is unsafe for drinking due to acute shortage of desalination plants.
The report confirmed that Israeli occupation only allows fishing within six nautical miles off Gaza shores. However; Israeli arrests and attacks against Palestinian fishermen and their fishing equipments are still continued in the allowed area.
Meanwhile, spokesman for the health ministry Ashraf Qudra warned of the serious deterioration of health situation in Gaza strip due to the unprecedented shortage in medical supplies and fuel in light of the continued unfair siege impose on Gaza Strip.
In its new report issued on Tuesday, the Popular Committee stated that more than one million Palestinian depend on aid supplies provided by international, Arab and Islamic humanitarian institutions that do not meet their needs.
The poverty rate has increased dramatically to reach 50 percent, while the daily average per capita income in the Gaza Strip is estimated at two dollars, 40 times less than Israeli income rate.
The report added that fuel and power crises are the most difficult problems witnessing in the besieged strip. Closing Karem Abu Salem crossing for only one day could lead to a significant fuel crisis in addition to 8-12 hours of power cuts each day, according to the report.
The power crisis has significantly affected public services in hospitals and schools in addition to the shutdown of several factories.
The report pointed out that Israeli occupation has deliberately targeted Gaza infrastructure and construction sector, which led to heavy economic losses.
Israeli authorities have banned the entry of construction materials, which led to the stop of construction projects estimated at 500 million dollars in light of the acute housing crisis in the strip.
In 2006, 4000 tons of cements, 1500 tons of steel, and 6000 tons of gravel were daily allowed to pass through Karem Abu Salem crossing, however; Israeli authorities have completely banned the entry of construction materials.
The report said that 80 percent of factories are partially or completely stopped in Gaza Strip due to the continued Israeli ban on construction materials’ access, which led to significant increase in unemployment rate.
On the other hand, the report said that 95 percent of Gaza water is unsafe for drinking due to acute shortage of desalination plants.
The report confirmed that Israeli occupation only allows fishing within six nautical miles off Gaza shores. However; Israeli arrests and attacks against Palestinian fishermen and their fishing equipments are still continued in the allowed area.
Meanwhile, spokesman for the health ministry Ashraf Qudra warned of the serious deterioration of health situation in Gaza strip due to the unprecedented shortage in medical supplies and fuel in light of the continued unfair siege impose on Gaza Strip.
24 june 2014
Israeli soldiers invaded, on Tuesday, Barta’a Palestinian village, south of the northern West Bank city of Jenin, and handed military orders for the destruction of more than ten stores.
Member of the Barta’a Village Council, Tawfiq Kabaha, stated that dozens of soldiers, and members of the Civil Administration Office, run by the military in the occupied territories, invaded the Industrial Area in the village, and handed the orders.
Soldiers also conducted searches of various homes, and property, in the village, causing damage.
The invasion is one of dozens of invasions, carried out in the village, in the last two months, and the army handed orders against more than 21 homes, and industrial structures.
Also on Tuesday, soldiers invaded the Hasaka village, north of the southern West Bank city of Hebron, and drained water wells used by the residents for their homes, and lands.
Member of the Barta’a Village Council, Tawfiq Kabaha, stated that dozens of soldiers, and members of the Civil Administration Office, run by the military in the occupied territories, invaded the Industrial Area in the village, and handed the orders.
Soldiers also conducted searches of various homes, and property, in the village, causing damage.
The invasion is one of dozens of invasions, carried out in the village, in the last two months, and the army handed orders against more than 21 homes, and industrial structures.
Also on Tuesday, soldiers invaded the Hasaka village, north of the southern West Bank city of Hebron, and drained water wells used by the residents for their homes, and lands.
10 june 2014
Half of the beaches in Gaza have dangerous levels of contamination and are unfit for swimming, the Palestinian environmental authority said Tuesday.
The Ministry of Health, together with the environmental authority, takes samples along the coast every month to test levels of pollution and contamination.
Khalid Abu Ghali, a spokesman for the environmental authority, told Ma'an that over 50 percent of the beaches are not fit for swimming and the agency has contacted concerned parties and lifeguards to identify areas with high levels of contamination.
Maps explaining which beaches are safe will be posted in public areas, he added.
The main cause of contamination is the low quality of sewage treatment stations which pump waste-water into the sea.
Three stations in Gaza City, Khan Younis, and Rafah do not function properly because of continuous power cuts due to a lack of fuel, Abu Ghali said.
Waste-water is often pumped directly into the sea without being treated due to the power cuts.
In 2012, the United Nations published a report warning that Gaza will no longer be "liveable" by 2020 unless urgent action is taken to improve water supply, power, health, and schooling.
An Israeli blockade on Gaza has been in place since 2006, limiting imports and exports and leading to major economic decline and a wide-reaching humanitarian crisis.
The Ministry of Health, together with the environmental authority, takes samples along the coast every month to test levels of pollution and contamination.
Khalid Abu Ghali, a spokesman for the environmental authority, told Ma'an that over 50 percent of the beaches are not fit for swimming and the agency has contacted concerned parties and lifeguards to identify areas with high levels of contamination.
Maps explaining which beaches are safe will be posted in public areas, he added.
The main cause of contamination is the low quality of sewage treatment stations which pump waste-water into the sea.
Three stations in Gaza City, Khan Younis, and Rafah do not function properly because of continuous power cuts due to a lack of fuel, Abu Ghali said.
Waste-water is often pumped directly into the sea without being treated due to the power cuts.
In 2012, the United Nations published a report warning that Gaza will no longer be "liveable" by 2020 unless urgent action is taken to improve water supply, power, health, and schooling.
An Israeli blockade on Gaza has been in place since 2006, limiting imports and exports and leading to major economic decline and a wide-reaching humanitarian crisis.
7 june 2014
The water resources in the West Bank are fully controlled by the Israeli occupation authorities (IOA) through Mekorot company (Israel’s national water company), which allocates 7 times more water to each settler than to the Palestinian citizen.
Due to Israel's water apartheid policies, the West Bank has been facing grave water shortages, forcing many of its residents to purchase water from the nearby villages or from vendors of private water trucks at a high cost.
The Israeli occupation authorities have continued to steal Palestinian groundwater and surface water, and then re-sell part of it to the Palestinian citizens at exorbitant prices, in violation of their rights that are internationally guaranteed.
In statements to PIC, Mayor of al-Khalil Daoud Zaatari said that the occupation authorities have demolished all the wells in the city that were built to collect rainwater.
The Israeli occupation forces demolished at least 55 water wells in 2012 and 65 others in 2013, he added, stressing that this policy of demolition has aggravated the water crisis especially in summer.
Due to unreliable water delivery, 700 thousand Palestinians have to buy water cisterns at high prices in order to collect rainwater and use it for all purposes. They do so despite the storage conditions that lead to poor quality water.
Although most Palestinian communities are now connected to a central water network, there is simply not enough water to supply running water. Accordingly, Palestinian authorities provide water by rotation. Palestinian residents must deal with water shutoffs for days and sometimes even weeks at a time.
Israelis, by contrast, have the benefit of unlimited running water year round and at any time of day.
Moreover, approximately 113,000 West Bank Palestinians live in about 70 villages that are not even hooked up to the central water grid.
This is the case because the Oslo Accords gave Israel control over the Palestinian water resources and even control the policies of the Palestinian Water Authority and Water Resources, the Mayor of al-Khalil said.
For his part, the Palestinian MP for al-Khalil city Khalil Rab'i held the IOA fully responsible for water scarcity in the occupied West Bank.
Meanwhile, the Palestinian Water Authority has confirmed that al-Khalil governorate will witness an acute water crisis this summer, without providing a solution to the problem.
Due to Israel's water apartheid policies, the West Bank has been facing grave water shortages, forcing many of its residents to purchase water from the nearby villages or from vendors of private water trucks at a high cost.
The Israeli occupation authorities have continued to steal Palestinian groundwater and surface water, and then re-sell part of it to the Palestinian citizens at exorbitant prices, in violation of their rights that are internationally guaranteed.
In statements to PIC, Mayor of al-Khalil Daoud Zaatari said that the occupation authorities have demolished all the wells in the city that were built to collect rainwater.
The Israeli occupation forces demolished at least 55 water wells in 2012 and 65 others in 2013, he added, stressing that this policy of demolition has aggravated the water crisis especially in summer.
Due to unreliable water delivery, 700 thousand Palestinians have to buy water cisterns at high prices in order to collect rainwater and use it for all purposes. They do so despite the storage conditions that lead to poor quality water.
Although most Palestinian communities are now connected to a central water network, there is simply not enough water to supply running water. Accordingly, Palestinian authorities provide water by rotation. Palestinian residents must deal with water shutoffs for days and sometimes even weeks at a time.
Israelis, by contrast, have the benefit of unlimited running water year round and at any time of day.
Moreover, approximately 113,000 West Bank Palestinians live in about 70 villages that are not even hooked up to the central water grid.
This is the case because the Oslo Accords gave Israel control over the Palestinian water resources and even control the policies of the Palestinian Water Authority and Water Resources, the Mayor of al-Khalil said.
For his part, the Palestinian MP for al-Khalil city Khalil Rab'i held the IOA fully responsible for water scarcity in the occupied West Bank.
Meanwhile, the Palestinian Water Authority has confirmed that al-Khalil governorate will witness an acute water crisis this summer, without providing a solution to the problem.
2 june 2014
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A statement recently released by Israeli human rights organization B'Tselem has revealed that 60-80,000 Palestinian Jerusalem residents have been without running water for 3 months.
According to the statement, several neighborhoods in north-east Jerusalem, namely the Shu’fat Refugee Camp, Ras Khamis, Ras Sh’hadeh and Dahiyat a-Salam, all separated from the rest of Jerusalem by Israel's massive (and illegal) apartheid wall, have been denied a regular supply of water from Jerusalem’s water utility company, Hagihon, beginning in March of 2014. Some homes have been completely cut off, while others recieve a sporadic supply. |
In other homes, the water pressure in the pipes is so low that the water does not reach the faucets, according to B'Tselem.
The statement further reports that residents spent three weeks making repeated appeals to Hagihon and the Jerusalem Municipality, in an attempt to have their utilities restored.
Their requests denied, the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) petitioned the High Court of Justice. In early April of 2014, B'Tselem further states, the court gave the state of Israel 60 days to respond to the petition. During this time residents go without regular running water.
ACRI Attorney Karen Tzafrir noted that families in these neighborhoods have no choice but to buy bottled water or to fill large containers and ration their intake. Showering, use of the toilet, laundry and other cleaning tasks have been reduced to absolute minimums.
The deadline is set for the first week of June.
The statement further reports that residents spent three weeks making repeated appeals to Hagihon and the Jerusalem Municipality, in an attempt to have their utilities restored.
Their requests denied, the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) petitioned the High Court of Justice. In early April of 2014, B'Tselem further states, the court gave the state of Israel 60 days to respond to the petition. During this time residents go without regular running water.
ACRI Attorney Karen Tzafrir noted that families in these neighborhoods have no choice but to buy bottled water or to fill large containers and ration their intake. Showering, use of the toilet, laundry and other cleaning tasks have been reduced to absolute minimums.
The deadline is set for the first week of June.
12 may 2014
Israeli military forces demolished a number of homes and steel structures south of Nablus on Monday, a Palestinian official and an Israeli spokesperson said.
Ghassan Daghlas, a PA official who monitors settlement activity in the northern West Bank, told Ma'an that dozens of military vehicles raided the village of Khirbet al-Tawil and demolished steel structures, water wells, and several homes made from corrugated iron, without providing further details.
An spokesperson for Israel's Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories confirmed the demolitions in a statement.
"Today (Monday) early in the morning security forces carried out the demolition of 7 buildings that were built illegally inside firing zones," the statement said.
"The sites were demolished after its owners appealed to the Supreme Court of Justice and their appeals were erased with their consent to exhaust possible procedures."
COGAT said the firing zones, near the Palestinian city of Nablus, were used by the Israeli army "on a regular basis for trainings."
On April 29, Israeli forces demolished a mosque and three houses in Khirbet al-Tawil, affecting 29 people, 21 of which were minors, a statement by the EU said.
EU missions in East Jerusalem and Ramallah condemned the demolitions and called on Israel "to meet its obligations regarding the living conditions of the Palestinian population in Area C, including by halting the forced transfer of population and demolitions of Palestinian housing and infrastructure."
Israel demolished over 500 Palestinian structures throughout the US-brokered peace negotiations.
Citing figures from the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the PLO said Israel demolished a total of 508 Palestinian structures, 312 of which were homes, from July 30, 2013 to April 29, 2014.
Area C makes up about 61 percent of the occupied West Bank. Under the terms of the 1993 Oslo Accords between Israel and the PLO, it is under full Israeli military control.
Last year, the World Bank reported that Israel's control over Area C deprives the Palestinian economy of an estimated $3.4 billion a year.
Ghassan Daghlas, a PA official who monitors settlement activity in the northern West Bank, told Ma'an that dozens of military vehicles raided the village of Khirbet al-Tawil and demolished steel structures, water wells, and several homes made from corrugated iron, without providing further details.
An spokesperson for Israel's Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories confirmed the demolitions in a statement.
"Today (Monday) early in the morning security forces carried out the demolition of 7 buildings that were built illegally inside firing zones," the statement said.
"The sites were demolished after its owners appealed to the Supreme Court of Justice and their appeals were erased with their consent to exhaust possible procedures."
COGAT said the firing zones, near the Palestinian city of Nablus, were used by the Israeli army "on a regular basis for trainings."
On April 29, Israeli forces demolished a mosque and three houses in Khirbet al-Tawil, affecting 29 people, 21 of which were minors, a statement by the EU said.
EU missions in East Jerusalem and Ramallah condemned the demolitions and called on Israel "to meet its obligations regarding the living conditions of the Palestinian population in Area C, including by halting the forced transfer of population and demolitions of Palestinian housing and infrastructure."
Israel demolished over 500 Palestinian structures throughout the US-brokered peace negotiations.
Citing figures from the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the PLO said Israel demolished a total of 508 Palestinian structures, 312 of which were homes, from July 30, 2013 to April 29, 2014.
Area C makes up about 61 percent of the occupied West Bank. Under the terms of the 1993 Oslo Accords between Israel and the PLO, it is under full Israeli military control.
Last year, the World Bank reported that Israel's control over Area C deprives the Palestinian economy of an estimated $3.4 billion a year.
11 may 2014
Like many cities in the region, the southern West Bank city of Hebron faces a shortage of space for waste disposal. Unlike most cities, however, Hebron's problems are exacerbated by gun-toting Israeli settlers who forcibly access the area's main landfill.
Mayor Dawood Zaatari told Ma'an on Sunday that the al-Minya landfill, which was built with World Bank funds specifically to serve the 800,000 Palestinian residents of the Bethlehem and Hebron regions, is still being used by Israeli settlers who dump their waste "at gunpoint."
"We could take the case to international courts in order to stop settlers from using the dump," al-Zaatari added, stressing that "settlements are illegal and we don't recognize them."
Al-Zaatari, who chairs the Joint Service Council for Solid Waste Management of Bethlehem and Hebron, added that the council contacted several international organizations and donor countries in attempt to stop settlers' violations. "A legal committee is studying the case and we could end up filing a complaint against settlers," he added.
The al-Minya landfill is the first modern waste landfill in the southern West Bank, and was intended to dispose of 34 percent of the entire West Bank's total needs.
Mayor Dawood Zaatari told Ma'an on Sunday that the al-Minya landfill, which was built with World Bank funds specifically to serve the 800,000 Palestinian residents of the Bethlehem and Hebron regions, is still being used by Israeli settlers who dump their waste "at gunpoint."
"We could take the case to international courts in order to stop settlers from using the dump," al-Zaatari added, stressing that "settlements are illegal and we don't recognize them."
Al-Zaatari, who chairs the Joint Service Council for Solid Waste Management of Bethlehem and Hebron, added that the council contacted several international organizations and donor countries in attempt to stop settlers' violations. "A legal committee is studying the case and we could end up filing a complaint against settlers," he added.
The al-Minya landfill is the first modern waste landfill in the southern West Bank, and was intended to dispose of 34 percent of the entire West Bank's total needs.
Hebron has also been suffering from a serious water shortage that is expected to take a few years in order to be fixed, the mayor told Ma'an.
Asked about the water crisis in Hebron and the municipality's preparations for the upcoming summer, the mayor said that all West Bank districts face water crises in summer. The problem, he said, is mainly political as Israel maintains control on water resources in the West Bank.
Hebron municipality is about to sign a memorandum of understanding with the Palestinian water authority to implement a wastewater desalination facility which will provide initially 12,000 cubic meters of water for agricultural and industrial use every day.
Hebron city needs 40,000 cubic meters of water every day. The Palestinian water authority, however, can provide only 25,000 cubic meters, according to mayor al-Zaatari, due to Israeli control over West Bank water resources.
Responding to a question about claims of maldistribution of water, the mayor said: "Water distribution is controlled electronically and we make sure that water is distributed equally to all citizens."
He added, however, that hospitals, medical centers and civil society organizations and the old city of Hebron are given priority because they deal with humanitarian issues.
Asked about the water crisis in Hebron and the municipality's preparations for the upcoming summer, the mayor said that all West Bank districts face water crises in summer. The problem, he said, is mainly political as Israel maintains control on water resources in the West Bank.
Hebron municipality is about to sign a memorandum of understanding with the Palestinian water authority to implement a wastewater desalination facility which will provide initially 12,000 cubic meters of water for agricultural and industrial use every day.
Hebron city needs 40,000 cubic meters of water every day. The Palestinian water authority, however, can provide only 25,000 cubic meters, according to mayor al-Zaatari, due to Israeli control over West Bank water resources.
Responding to a question about claims of maldistribution of water, the mayor said: "Water distribution is controlled electronically and we make sure that water is distributed equally to all citizens."
He added, however, that hospitals, medical centers and civil society organizations and the old city of Hebron are given priority because they deal with humanitarian issues.