Israeli attacks worsen Gaza's vulnerability amid climate change

Israeli aggression worsened situation in Gaza; latest attacks will have serious environmental consequences in long term, expert says.

According to experts who conducted the research, Israel specifically targets power plants, water purification systems and water resources in Gaza, and as a result, untreated or partially treated sewage water is discharged directly into the Mediterranean Sea, posing serious threats to public health.

While the World Health Organization (WHO) noted the lower limit of water per person per day is 100 liters (26 gallons), the figure drops to 45 liters in Gaza, 50 in Jerusalem and the West Bank and 20 in some areas under Israeli control.

The average Israeli consumes 369.5 liters of water per day. As a result, 660,000 Palestinians living in Jerusalem and the West Bank have insufficient access to water, while 1 million in Gaza suffer from water scarcity.

…the Israeli government has built a dam on the eastern border of Gaza. They suddenly open the dam, causing the agricultural lands to be flooded. This causes destruction to a large part of the agricultural lands and crops in Gaza. The climate crisis is not only natural but also political in Palestine.

"Read the article: Israeli attacks worsen Gaza's vulnerability amid climate change

Hostilities in the Gaza Strip and Israel Flash Update #5. Nov 26

KEY POINTS

• The humanitarian pause, agreed upon by Israel and Hamas, which took effect on 24 November, has been largely maintained for the third consecutive day. This pause has enabled the UN to enhance the delivery of assistance into and across Gaza.  

• On 26 November, aid convoys reached areas north of Wadi Gaza (hereafter: the north). UN agencies and the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) distributed 1,062 metric tonnes (MT) of ready-to-eat food to four UNRWA shelters in Jabalia camp; 185 MT of tents and blankets and 890 MT of bottled water to various sites; as well as 164 MT of medical supplies to Al Ahli hospital in Gaza city. The convoys were carefully inspected by Israeli forces deployed at a checkpoint near Wadi Gaza before proceeding northwards.  

• The mission that reached Al Ahli Baptist Hospital evacuated at least 17 patients and wounded people, along with 11 of their companions, to the European Hospital in Khan Younis (in the south). Despite enormous shortages and constraints, Al Ahli remains operational and admitting patients. 

• Aid distribution in areas south of Wadi Gaza, where the bulk of an estimated 1.7 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) are currently staying, has been accelerated over the past three days. Key service providers, including hospitals, water and sanitation facilities, and IDP shelters, have continued receiving fuel on a daily basis to operate generators.    

• Over the past three days, cooking gas has entered Gaza, contrary to the time before the pause. However, the amounts fall well below the needs. Queues at a filling station in Khan Younis have reportedly extended for about 2 kilometres, with people waiting at them overnight. Meanwhile, reports indicate that people are burning doors and window frames to cook. 

• On 26 November, 17 hostages held in Gaza and 39 Palestinian detainees held in Israeli prisons were released. The released hostages included 13 Israelis – four women and nine children – and four foreign nationals. Among the Palestinian detainees were 39 boys. Since the start of the pause, 39 Israelis, 117 Palestinians and 19 foreign nationals have been released. 

• Between 25 and 26 November, Israeli forces in the West Bank killed seven Palestinians, including four children, bringing to 230 the Palestinian death toll since 7 October; 222 by Israeli forces and eight by settlers. 

  Read the report: Hostilities in the Gaza Strip and Israel Flash Update #51

UN staff collect and transport vaccines from Gaza city to southern Gaza, where they can be refrigerated, 26 November 2023. Photo by WHO

AL-SHIFA HOSPITAL, HAMAS’S TUNNELS, AND ISRAELI PROPAGANDA

November 21

As Israel wages its propaganda war over Al-Shifa, it is simultaneously laying siege to yet another medical facility.

“Al-Shifa’s Tunnels Were Built by Israel

It’s also well known that there are, in fact, tunnels and rooms under Al-Shifa. We know that because Israel admits that it built them in the early 1980s. According to Israeli media reports, the underground facilities were designed by Tel Aviv architects Gershon Zippor and Benjamin Idelson. ‘Israel renovated and expanded the hospital complex with American assistance, in a project that also included the excavation of an underground concrete floor,’ according to Zvi Elhyani, founder of the Israel Architecture Archive, writing in Israel’s Ynetnews.

The underground infrastructure was part of a modernization and expansion effort at Al-Shifa commissioned by Israel’s Public Works Department. ‘The Israeli civil administration in the territories constructed the hospital complex’s Building Number 2, which has a large cement basement that housed the hospital’s laundry and various administrative services,’ according to a report in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. The room and tunnels under Al-Shifa were reportedly completed in 1983. Tablet magazine described the space as ‘a secure underground operating room and tunnel network.’ Zippor’s son Barak, who began working at his father’s architecture firm in the 1990s, said that during the construction at Al-Shifa in the 1980s, the Israeli construction contractors hired Hamas to provide security guards to prevent attacks on the building site.”

Read the article: AL-SHIFA HOSPITAL, HAMAS’S TUNNELS, AND ISRAELI PROPAGANDA

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Yard sign designed by Paul Normandia of Red Sun Press.

Amid Gaza war, activists in Argentina aim to expel Israeli water company

Protesters have denounced the state-owned Israeli company Mekorot for its human rights record as it expands in Argentina.

Buenos Aires, Argentina – The upscale neighbourhood of Recoleta was pulsing with the sound of drums and chanting last month, as protesters gathered outside the Palestinian embassy in Buenos Aires to call for an end to Israel’s war in Gaza.

But amid the sea of Palestinian flags, Silvia Ferreyra gripped a different symbol of solidarity. Above her head, she held a banner depicting a blue ribbon of water trapped behind a lock and chain. Printed above the picture in large red type was the phrase, “Fuera Mekorot”.

Amid Gaza war, activists in Argentina aim to expel Israeli water company