28 may 2020
By Fareed Taamallah
Last week, the Palestinian Water Authority blasted Israel for significantly reducing the amount of water allotted to the West Bank.
“We are facing this crisis as we enter the summer season, a time of the year when people are usually in need of more, not less water,” PWA leader Mazen Ghneim was quoted as saying.
In my neighborhood in Ramallah, every year during the summer months, we hardly have water in the pipes. Water runs only one day a week. So, all the households must follow the water distribution schedule to plan their house activities such as doing the laundry and house cleaning.
Some Palestinian communities in the West Bank are linked to “joint” water networks that serve illegal Israeli settlers. During the dry summer months, water valves leading to the adjacent Palestinian communities are routinely shut off by Israeli authorities, so that the settlers do not suffer water shortages.
The water shortage in the Palestinian territories is not a nature-related water crisis, but rather a result of the Israeli occupation which exploits over 85% of the water resources.
Facts and Figures
Israel controls the main three trans-boundaries aquifers in the occupied Palestinian territories. The first and the biggest one is the West Bank (mountains) aquifer which is fed by rainfall and generates 679 mcm of water per year. The second is the Jordan river which provides Israel with an estimated 450 mcm per year. Palestinians are denied access and supply of its water. The third is the coastal aquifer which generates 450 mcm of water for Israel and 55 mcm for Gaza.
Palestine has a good precipitation rate. Ramallah, for instance, has an annual rainfall average of 615 millimeters which is almost as much as London at 620 mm.
According to the Palestinian water authority report of 2012, around 784 mcm of rainfall is estimated to have recharged the groundwater systems in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. However, Palestinians are allocated only 375 mcm of that groundwater, while Israel consumes 2,346 mcm annually [pdf].
The Oslo Agreement
The water problem started from the beginning of the Israeli occupation of Palestine but was exacerbated with the Oslo II interim agreement between the PLO and the Israeli government in 1995. The Oslo Agreement stipulated “the equitable utilization of joint water resources for implementation in and beyond the interim period.” But in reality, this has never happened.
The agreement which was supposed to be an interim period of five years bounded the development of Palestinian water resources and was framed on the assumption that Palestinian water needs were 70–80 mcm per year and that the interim water development must be managed through a Palestinian-Israeli mechanism. The topics of ‘common interest’ (water being one) would be further delineated under the permanent status negotiations.
The failure to reach a permanent agreement has meant the inequitable distribution of the West Bank groundwater resources with 15% allocated to the Palestinians and 85% to Israel.
As indicated in the Oslo Agreement, a Joint Water Committee (JWC) was established to oversee all water and wastewater related projects in the West Bank. JWC is made up of an equal number of representatives of Israel and the Palestinian Authority, respectively, and decisions are made by consensus.
This gave Israel a veto power over all Palestinian water resource projects and blocked any request by the Palestinians to drill a new well. Wells built or rehabilitated without Israeli-issued permits are systematically destroyed by the Israeli occupation forces.
Water Apartheid
While the Palestinian communities are facing drought and water shortages, the Israeli settlements – located in the same geographical area – are enjoying an abundance of water supplies, allowing settlers to fill their swimming pools and irrigate their gardens and fields. The lack of access to adequate quantities of water necessary for livestock herding and food production leaves Bedouins, livestock owners and farmers particularly vulnerable.
Israeli agricultural settlements in the West Bank, particularly those in the Jordan Valley, enjoy up to 6 times the amount of water of the nearby Palestinian communities. In the Palestinian town of Tubas, the consumption rate is 30 liters per person per day. However, residents of the nearby illegal Israeli settlement of Beda’ot, consume around 401 liters per day, according to B’Tselem.
While the Palestinian population has doubled, water availability has decreased. According to the World Bank report of 2018 [pdf] “With the West Bank and Gaza population of approximately 4.8 million growing at an average annual rate of 2.8 percent, the domestic supply gap is projected to be about 152 and 135 million cubic meters respectively”.
Israeli hydro-hegemony has left Palestinians with a deficit water budget. They have been forced to purchase from Israel around a quarter of domestic water supplies to make up for this deficit.
According to the Palestinian Bureau of Statistics, the daily per capita water consumption rate is around 88 liters [pdf]. By comparison, the daily per capita water consumption in Israel is 257 liters [pdf]. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends 100 liters of water per capita per day as a minimum. Palestinian consumption is less than the minimum.
In the Gaza Strip, the water situation is even worse. The severe lack of water caused by the Israeli brutal blockade since 2007, has led to a heavy reliance on the underlying portion of the Coastal aquifer as Gaza’s only water supply.
The 2 million inhabitants extracted about 180 mcm in 2017, but this quantity is obtained via unsafe pumping that jeopardizes the sustainability of the source, while the total recharge is only one-third of extraction. The direct consequences of over pumping are seawater intrusion and uplift of the deep brine water; as a result, 97% of the water is undrinkable and does not match WHO quality standards of accepted guidelines for potable water resources.
Annexation Plan
Israel is controlling the two main Palestinian water resources in the West Bank (the Jordan River basin in the east and the western mountain aquifer) which supply Israel with about 900 million cubic meters of water annually.
Through the annexation of the West Bank areas expected this summer, Israel aims to keep the West Bank aquifers behind the new Israeli borders by retaining control of the settlement blocks adjacent to the basins, in particular, the Jordan Valley and the Salfit area where my hometown of Qira is located.
That annexation will perpetuate the high Israeli water-consumption levels while denying basic Palestinian needs and force Palestinians to depend on Israel for water, thus preserving the status quo of a dramatic unjust division of water resources, dimming any hope for a viable Palestinian state and peace in the region.
Last week, the Palestinian Water Authority blasted Israel for significantly reducing the amount of water allotted to the West Bank.
“We are facing this crisis as we enter the summer season, a time of the year when people are usually in need of more, not less water,” PWA leader Mazen Ghneim was quoted as saying.
In my neighborhood in Ramallah, every year during the summer months, we hardly have water in the pipes. Water runs only one day a week. So, all the households must follow the water distribution schedule to plan their house activities such as doing the laundry and house cleaning.
Some Palestinian communities in the West Bank are linked to “joint” water networks that serve illegal Israeli settlers. During the dry summer months, water valves leading to the adjacent Palestinian communities are routinely shut off by Israeli authorities, so that the settlers do not suffer water shortages.
The water shortage in the Palestinian territories is not a nature-related water crisis, but rather a result of the Israeli occupation which exploits over 85% of the water resources.
Facts and Figures
Israel controls the main three trans-boundaries aquifers in the occupied Palestinian territories. The first and the biggest one is the West Bank (mountains) aquifer which is fed by rainfall and generates 679 mcm of water per year. The second is the Jordan river which provides Israel with an estimated 450 mcm per year. Palestinians are denied access and supply of its water. The third is the coastal aquifer which generates 450 mcm of water for Israel and 55 mcm for Gaza.
Palestine has a good precipitation rate. Ramallah, for instance, has an annual rainfall average of 615 millimeters which is almost as much as London at 620 mm.
According to the Palestinian water authority report of 2012, around 784 mcm of rainfall is estimated to have recharged the groundwater systems in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. However, Palestinians are allocated only 375 mcm of that groundwater, while Israel consumes 2,346 mcm annually [pdf].
The Oslo Agreement
The water problem started from the beginning of the Israeli occupation of Palestine but was exacerbated with the Oslo II interim agreement between the PLO and the Israeli government in 1995. The Oslo Agreement stipulated “the equitable utilization of joint water resources for implementation in and beyond the interim period.” But in reality, this has never happened.
The agreement which was supposed to be an interim period of five years bounded the development of Palestinian water resources and was framed on the assumption that Palestinian water needs were 70–80 mcm per year and that the interim water development must be managed through a Palestinian-Israeli mechanism. The topics of ‘common interest’ (water being one) would be further delineated under the permanent status negotiations.
The failure to reach a permanent agreement has meant the inequitable distribution of the West Bank groundwater resources with 15% allocated to the Palestinians and 85% to Israel.
As indicated in the Oslo Agreement, a Joint Water Committee (JWC) was established to oversee all water and wastewater related projects in the West Bank. JWC is made up of an equal number of representatives of Israel and the Palestinian Authority, respectively, and decisions are made by consensus.
This gave Israel a veto power over all Palestinian water resource projects and blocked any request by the Palestinians to drill a new well. Wells built or rehabilitated without Israeli-issued permits are systematically destroyed by the Israeli occupation forces.
Water Apartheid
While the Palestinian communities are facing drought and water shortages, the Israeli settlements – located in the same geographical area – are enjoying an abundance of water supplies, allowing settlers to fill their swimming pools and irrigate their gardens and fields. The lack of access to adequate quantities of water necessary for livestock herding and food production leaves Bedouins, livestock owners and farmers particularly vulnerable.
Israeli agricultural settlements in the West Bank, particularly those in the Jordan Valley, enjoy up to 6 times the amount of water of the nearby Palestinian communities. In the Palestinian town of Tubas, the consumption rate is 30 liters per person per day. However, residents of the nearby illegal Israeli settlement of Beda’ot, consume around 401 liters per day, according to B’Tselem.
While the Palestinian population has doubled, water availability has decreased. According to the World Bank report of 2018 [pdf] “With the West Bank and Gaza population of approximately 4.8 million growing at an average annual rate of 2.8 percent, the domestic supply gap is projected to be about 152 and 135 million cubic meters respectively”.
Israeli hydro-hegemony has left Palestinians with a deficit water budget. They have been forced to purchase from Israel around a quarter of domestic water supplies to make up for this deficit.
According to the Palestinian Bureau of Statistics, the daily per capita water consumption rate is around 88 liters [pdf]. By comparison, the daily per capita water consumption in Israel is 257 liters [pdf]. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends 100 liters of water per capita per day as a minimum. Palestinian consumption is less than the minimum.
In the Gaza Strip, the water situation is even worse. The severe lack of water caused by the Israeli brutal blockade since 2007, has led to a heavy reliance on the underlying portion of the Coastal aquifer as Gaza’s only water supply.
The 2 million inhabitants extracted about 180 mcm in 2017, but this quantity is obtained via unsafe pumping that jeopardizes the sustainability of the source, while the total recharge is only one-third of extraction. The direct consequences of over pumping are seawater intrusion and uplift of the deep brine water; as a result, 97% of the water is undrinkable and does not match WHO quality standards of accepted guidelines for potable water resources.
Annexation Plan
Israel is controlling the two main Palestinian water resources in the West Bank (the Jordan River basin in the east and the western mountain aquifer) which supply Israel with about 900 million cubic meters of water annually.
Through the annexation of the West Bank areas expected this summer, Israel aims to keep the West Bank aquifers behind the new Israeli borders by retaining control of the settlement blocks adjacent to the basins, in particular, the Jordan Valley and the Salfit area where my hometown of Qira is located.
That annexation will perpetuate the high Israeli water-consumption levels while denying basic Palestinian needs and force Palestinians to depend on Israel for water, thus preserving the status quo of a dramatic unjust division of water resources, dimming any hope for a viable Palestinian state and peace in the region.
27 may 2020
Israeli forces ordered a halt on the construction of some structures in al-Walaja village, west of the southern West Bank city of Bethlehem, said a local source.
Coordinator of the local Anti-Wall and Settlement Committee Hassan Breija and the village mayor Khader al-'Araj said that Israeli forces raided Ein Jowaize area in the village, where they handed a villager a military order to stop the construction of his retaining walls.
Soldier delivered military orders to stop the construction of several house basements and a water well.
They also handed several other villagers notices, ordering them to appear before intelligence for interrogation over the construction of their houses and warehouses.
Located at a horizontal distance of 5 kilometers to the west of Bethlehem, al-Walaja has a population of some 2,800 and occupies a total area of 4,328 dunams.
Under the Oslo Accords, an agreement made 25 years ago that was supposed to last just five years towards a self-governing country alongside Israel, the Palestinian Authority was given ed control over a small pocket of land occupying 113 dunams and accounting for only 2.6 percent of the village’s total area.
This area is classified as Area B. In contrast, Israel maintains control over the remainder, classified as Area C.
An area of 4,209 dunams of the village, accounting for 97 percent, is completely isolated by the section of Israel’s apartheid wall. The majority of this land is agricultural land, forests and open spaces.
The village is flanked by two Israeli colonial settlements; Gilo from the east and Har Gilo from the south.
Using the pretext of illegal building, Israel demolishes houses on a regular basis to restrict Palestinian expansion in occupied Jerusalem.
At the same time, the municipality and government build tens of thousands of housing units in illegal settlements for Jews with a goal to offset the demographic balance in favor of the Jewish settlers in the occupied city of Jerusalem.
Israel refuses to permit virtually any Palestinian construction in Area C, which constitutes 60 percent of the occupied West Bank and falls under full Israeli military rule, forcing residents to build without obtaining rarely-granted permits to provide shelters for their families.
In contrast, Israel much more easily gives the estimated 550,000 Jewish Israeli settlers there building permits and provides them with roads, electricity, water and sewage systems that remain inaccessible to many neighboring Palestinians.
Coordinator of the local Anti-Wall and Settlement Committee Hassan Breija and the village mayor Khader al-'Araj said that Israeli forces raided Ein Jowaize area in the village, where they handed a villager a military order to stop the construction of his retaining walls.
Soldier delivered military orders to stop the construction of several house basements and a water well.
They also handed several other villagers notices, ordering them to appear before intelligence for interrogation over the construction of their houses and warehouses.
Located at a horizontal distance of 5 kilometers to the west of Bethlehem, al-Walaja has a population of some 2,800 and occupies a total area of 4,328 dunams.
Under the Oslo Accords, an agreement made 25 years ago that was supposed to last just five years towards a self-governing country alongside Israel, the Palestinian Authority was given ed control over a small pocket of land occupying 113 dunams and accounting for only 2.6 percent of the village’s total area.
This area is classified as Area B. In contrast, Israel maintains control over the remainder, classified as Area C.
An area of 4,209 dunams of the village, accounting for 97 percent, is completely isolated by the section of Israel’s apartheid wall. The majority of this land is agricultural land, forests and open spaces.
The village is flanked by two Israeli colonial settlements; Gilo from the east and Har Gilo from the south.
Using the pretext of illegal building, Israel demolishes houses on a regular basis to restrict Palestinian expansion in occupied Jerusalem.
At the same time, the municipality and government build tens of thousands of housing units in illegal settlements for Jews with a goal to offset the demographic balance in favor of the Jewish settlers in the occupied city of Jerusalem.
Israel refuses to permit virtually any Palestinian construction in Area C, which constitutes 60 percent of the occupied West Bank and falls under full Israeli military rule, forcing residents to build without obtaining rarely-granted permits to provide shelters for their families.
In contrast, Israel much more easily gives the estimated 550,000 Jewish Israeli settlers there building permits and provides them with roads, electricity, water and sewage systems that remain inaccessible to many neighboring Palestinians.
26 may 2020
Israeli forces late Monday night notified to demolish 10 wells built to collect rain water in the town of Az-Zawiya to the west of Salfit, the northern occupied West Bank, according to local sources.
Sources told WAFA Israeli forces handed notices for the demolition of 10 wells belonging to local residents in the western part of Az-Zawyia.
Israeli army to raze 10 water wells in W. Bank town of Zawiya
The Israeli occupation army last night threatened to demolish several water wells in az-Zawiya town in the West Bank province of Salfit.
According to local sources, Israeli soldiers notified nine citizens in az-Zawiya town of a military decision to demolish 10 water wells belonging to them in the western area of the town.
The Israeli army claimed the wells, which are used mainly for agricultural purposes, were unlicensed.
The legacy of Israel’s 50-year occupation of the Palestinian territories has been full of systematic human rights violations on a mass scale, including its discriminatory policies on Palestinians’ access to adequate supplies of clean and safe water.
Soon after Israel occupied the West Bank, east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip in June 1967, its military authorities consolidated complete power over all water resources and water-related infrastructure in the occupied Palestinian territories. 50 years on, Israel continues to control and restrict Palestinian access to water in their own areas to a level which neither meets their minimum needs.
Sources told WAFA Israeli forces handed notices for the demolition of 10 wells belonging to local residents in the western part of Az-Zawyia.
Israeli army to raze 10 water wells in W. Bank town of Zawiya
The Israeli occupation army last night threatened to demolish several water wells in az-Zawiya town in the West Bank province of Salfit.
According to local sources, Israeli soldiers notified nine citizens in az-Zawiya town of a military decision to demolish 10 water wells belonging to them in the western area of the town.
The Israeli army claimed the wells, which are used mainly for agricultural purposes, were unlicensed.
The legacy of Israel’s 50-year occupation of the Palestinian territories has been full of systematic human rights violations on a mass scale, including its discriminatory policies on Palestinians’ access to adequate supplies of clean and safe water.
Soon after Israel occupied the West Bank, east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip in June 1967, its military authorities consolidated complete power over all water resources and water-related infrastructure in the occupied Palestinian territories. 50 years on, Israel continues to control and restrict Palestinian access to water in their own areas to a level which neither meets their minimum needs.
21 may 2020
The Palestinian Water Authority (PWA) said today that the Israeli occupation authorities significantly reduced the amount of water alloted to the West Bank districts of Ramallah, Nablus, Jenin, and Hebron, during the past few days.
The PWA said the Israeli sudden cuts directly affected the amount of water supplied to the public and led to irregular water pressure in the transmission lines, adding that it was put under a great pressure to manage and distribute the available amount of water in a fair manner.
Head of the PWA, Mazen Ghneim, said that the Israeli occupation is missing no opportunity to exacerbate the daily suffering of the people in the West Bank and by all means.
“We are facing this crisis as we enter the summer season, a time of the year when people are usually in need of more and not less quantities of water.
Demand for water, according to indicators, is expected to increase by about 30 percent,” Ghneim said.
He called upon the international community to pressure Israel to stop its arbitrary policy of by using water as a tool to clamp down on the Palestinian people.
The PWA said the Israeli sudden cuts directly affected the amount of water supplied to the public and led to irregular water pressure in the transmission lines, adding that it was put under a great pressure to manage and distribute the available amount of water in a fair manner.
Head of the PWA, Mazen Ghneim, said that the Israeli occupation is missing no opportunity to exacerbate the daily suffering of the people in the West Bank and by all means.
“We are facing this crisis as we enter the summer season, a time of the year when people are usually in need of more and not less quantities of water.
Demand for water, according to indicators, is expected to increase by about 30 percent,” Ghneim said.
He called upon the international community to pressure Israel to stop its arbitrary policy of by using water as a tool to clamp down on the Palestinian people.
