Mountains of waste in Gaza pose severe public health risk
More than two years of war have left areas in Gaza buried under mountains of waste, which are now posing a severe health risk.
“We are suffering with the strong smell of waste everywhere – the foul odour and the growing number of insects are unbearable,” Jamal Nassar, a displaced Palestinian, told Al Jazeera in Gaza City. “New types of pests have appeared, including small cockroaches, bugs and mosquitoes. It feels like we are dying slowly in these conditions.”
Municipal workers say dozens of rubbish trucks were destroyed during the fighting, while fuel shortages and the lack of spare parts have crippled cleanup operations, even during the ceasefire.
“The municipality is struggling with two important things: First, it does not have access to the main landfill in eastern Gaza City, as the Israeli military is controlling the area. As a result, rubbish is piled all across the city,” Gaza City municipal officer Maher Salem told Al Jazeera.
“Second, we do not have enough donors to assist the municipality and its operations.”
Fathi Hussain, an emergency physician, says skin diseases such as scabies and hepatitis are spreading. “We have also come across cases of respiratory disease due to burning rubbish in the streets. These cases need immediate medical attention and sometimes intensive care,” he said.
Israel army shoots and kills four Palestinians near ‘yellow line’
The yellow line is the boundary behind which Israeli troops pulled back and remain stationed under the ceasefire agreement with Hamas.
Mahmoud Basal, spokesman for Gaza’s Civil Defence rescue service, said four people were killed earlier in two separate attacks, both times “by Israeli gunfire as they were returning to check on their homes” in eastern Gaza City.
Israel’s military said it opened fire at Palestinian fighters who allegedly crossed the yellow line and approached troops in the Shujayea neighbourhood.
Hamas denied knowledge of any such attack, with one official accusing Israel of fabricating “pretexts” to resume the war on Gaza.
Confusion over ‘yellow line’ as Israeli soldiers shoot more Palestinians
It’s been another deadly day in Gaza with Palestinians approaching the so-called “yellow line” ceasefire demarcation gunned down by Israeli troops. Gaza City residents reported confusion over the line’s location because of a lack of a visible boundary.
“The whole area is in ruins. We saw the maps but we can’t tell where those lines are,” said Samir, 50, who lives in Tuffah in the city’s east were the shootings took place.
Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said anyone remaining beyond the yellow line would be targeted without warning.
How is that even a ceasefire, kill on sight?
