Thirst takes all the energy from me and my children, says Um Nidal Abu Nahl, a mother of four, in the city of Gaza to AFP.
Tens of thousands dead, warnings of famine, destroyed infrastructure and enormous suffering. But Israel's bombardment of Gaza is also reported to have damaged about 80 percent of the previously fragile water distribution system. Pipes are broken, many wells are out of order and water sources have been contaminated.
A large proportion of Gazans are dependent on water transports and water taps that aid organizations have set up. But these have also been destroyed in Israeli attacks, contaminated or are located in areas where fighting is ongoing or where Israel has ordered evacuations.
Think clearly?
Mahmoud Deeb, who lives in the city of Gaza, admits that the water he can now get is often undrinkable. But his family, where everyone has difficulty thinking clearly due to thirst, has no choice.
We know it's contaminated, but what can we do? I used to go to water distribution sites with heavy cans, but those sites were also bombed, he says.
After previously during the war having cut off the water supply, Israel is reported to have connected water to some pipes in the northern parts of the strip, pipes that have previously been part of the Israeli company Mekorot's network. But residents tell AFP that the pipes are dry. And in the city of Gaza, the part of the water supply that comes from Mekorot has not worked for two weeks, according to Assem al-Habih, spokesperson for the city administration.
Add to that most of the strip's desalination plants, which convert seawater into drinking water, are down due to Israel cutting off the power supply.
Opens fire
In a desperate search for water, many residents are now turning to old wells. But in these, it is not uncommon for the water to be brackish or contaminated, which can lead to serious illness and death, warn aid organizations.
Water, like food, must never be used for political purposes, says Rosalia Bollen, spokesperson for the UN Children's Fund Unicef.
It's extremely hot, diseases are spreading and water is something we don't talk enough about.
According to Gaza's Hamas-controlled civil defense, it has happened that Israel has opened fire on crowds at water distribution sites, including in the Nuseirat refugee camp. The situation is reminiscent of that at the food distribution sites run by the heavily criticized Israeli-American organization Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF).
The Gaza war has been going on since the terrorist-stamped Hamas large-scale attack on Israel in October 2023.
