Water crisis in Rafah worsens life for displaced Palestinians

By Husni Nedim

GAZA (AA) - Dozens of displaced Palestinians in the city of Rafah, southern Gaza, stand in long lines for hours to obtain drinking water, as the devastating Israeli war continues since Oct. 7.

Israeli attacks have damaged facilities and caused a fuel shortage in Rafah, on Gaza's border with Egypt.

The population has soared to 1.5 million as Palestinians seek refuge. With no electricity, residents face dire conditions.

Displaced Palestinians have been experiencing a water crisis that exacerbates their suffering during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

- Oppression against Palestinians

Displaced Palestinian woman Ummu Ala told Anadolu expressing her frustration with the difficult living conditions caused by Israeli attacks, describing the suffering as "beyond imagination."

Ala said the water shortage in Rafah city has exacerbated the suffering of displaced Palestinians to an "indescribable extent."

She expressed her astonishment at the silence of the world against war crimes and genocide committed against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, in addition to the water and food crisis.

She said: "Even water, if available, is polluted and unfit for drinking, and contains germs and many impurities."

"It is enough injustice. We do not know how to sleep, nor do we eat or drink normally. We do not know any meaning of life, and our suffering is getting worse daily," she added.

- Water scarcity leads to hygiene deficiencies

In another interview with Anadolu, Umm Magdy Salem said the suffering is no different from her previous suffering with the water shortage crisis.

“We are suffering from an acute water shortage," she said.

Salim highlights the struggle to obtain drinking water, waiting for hours daily in long queues just for a single container.

“Water for other uses, such as bathing and washing clothes, reaches us only once every 10 days through municipal lines," she added.

Salim emphasized that water scarcity leads to hygiene deficiencies, increasing diseases.

She also noted the worsening humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, highlighting the lack of necessities such as food, flour, and sugar.

Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on the Gaza Strip since an Oct. 7 cross-border attack led by Hamas in which some 1,200 Israelis were killed.

Nearly 32,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have since been killed in Gaza, and more than 74,000 injured amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

The Israeli war has pushed 85% of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of most food, clean water, and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to ensure its forces do not commit acts of genocide, and guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.