PA: Palestinian water crisis will end when occupation does

Head of the Palestinian Water Authority (PWA) Mazen Ghonim said yesterday that the Palestinian water crisis will end only when the Israeli occupation does, Al-Watan Voice reported.

During the opening of a new water project, Ghoneim stressed that the Palestinians have been suffering from a severe shortage of running and drinking water due to the strict unjustified Israeli measures regarding the access to water resources.

He said that the PWA has carried out numerous projects to help resolve the water crisis, including building desalination plants, extending pipelines and putting pressure on Israel to increase the portion of water sold to Palestinians.

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Ghoneim reiterated that the Israeli occupation has been imposing a water siege on Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip for years.

He noted that the Israeli occupation controls 85 per cent of the Palestinian water resources and has undermined the implementation of many projects related to water and sanitation. He also said that Israel carries various violations related to water.

The Palestinian official said that the PWA’s projects had improved access to water and there are more efforts being carried out in this regard.