Israel cuts off power to water plants in Rafah
Municipal authorities in the southern city in Gaza have announced that Israel has disconnected power to the city’s two desalination plants.
The plants provide approximately 70 percent of the water supply of the residents of the Rafah governorate in the central Gaza Strip, the municipality said, adding that they produce approximately 20,000 cubic metres (4,400,000 gallons) of desalinated water daily.
As we’ve been reporting, the move comes after Israel blocked the entry of all humanitarian aid into Gaza in a bid to get Hamas to accept changes to the terms of the ceasefire deal.
Israeli media have reported that Netanyahu’s government plans to cut off water and electricity and again forcibly displace Palestinians from the north to the south as part of the pressure campaign.
People in Gaza in ‘survival mode’ as food and aid dry up
People here have to break their fast with whatever they can find. The blockade has made basic goods nearly impossible to secure. This includes cooking oil, rice, flour and other necessities. The goods that used to be commonly available are either unavailable or unaffordable.
If we look at the amount of aid that came in during the past 42 days – the first phase of the ceasefire – it was still just half of what used to come in before the war.
People are now left with no options and so much uncertainty. They are forced to live off whatever is available. They are in survival mode.
Aid ‘must never be used as weapons of war’
The UNRWA commissioner-general has added his voice to the growing calls for Israel to resume aid to Gaza, stating that the decision to halt it is endangering the lives of already exhausted civilians.
“Humanitarian aid must continue to flow at scale similar to what we’ve seen over the past six weeks when the ceasefire began,” said Philippe Lazzarini in a post on X. “Aid and these basic services are nonnegotiable. They must never be used as weapons of war.”
Over six tonnes of medical supplies waiting to reach Gaza amid blockade: Aid group
The International Rescue Committee (IRC) says it has gathered 6.7 tonnes of “much-needed pharmaceutical and medical supplies” to send to hospitals in Gaza. However, due to the blockade, the supplies may not arrive as planned this week, it added.
“It’s imperative that aid access is now immediately resumed,” said Bob Kitchen, the IRC’s vice president of emergencies and humanitarian action, adding that the blocked medical supplies would help provide “life-saving trauma care” to thousands.
“With humanitarian needs sky high, more aid access is required, not less,” he said, adding that whether or not the Gaza ceasefire holds, Israel is obligated under international humanitarian law to facilitate aid delivery.
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