Ayadil Saparbekov, the World Health Organization's (WHO) head of health emergencies in the occupied Palestinian territories, said the number of people in the Gaza Strip who need to be evacuated for medical care may have risen to 14,000. He then declared himself "extremely concerned" about possible epidemics in war-torn Gaza after the poliovirus was detected in wastewater: communicable diseases could cause many deaths.
Shortages were already commonplace in the Gaza Strip before the war between Israel and Hamas. According to the United Nations, most groundwater is polluted by untreated sewage due to faulty infrastructure , some damaged by previous wars. So now the water flows carefully from the tank to the basins for washing dishes and to the jugs for washing or drinking.
The lack of drinking water has been described as "dramatic" by many NGOs and United Nations agencies. Already in December, Unicef reported that 90% of the water needs of children in the Gaza Strip were not being met. For weeks, AFP journalists have been collecting testimonies from Palestinians in the Gaza Strip who speak of the "crazy thirst", the "dream of a cup of tea", the "humiliation" of not being able to wash.
While Israel cut electricity to the Gaza Strip a few days after the Hamas attack that started the war on October 7 , for several weeks there has been talk of supplying electricity again, from Israel, to a desalination station and a another for water treatment, according to announcements by the Palestinian Authority, United Nations agencies and Israel. But the local electricity distribution company explained that the line was still too damaged to be able to distribute electricity again.
(Unioneonline/D)
