Weaponising Water in Palestine

In Palestine, water shortages are driven by politics rather than availability.

Water shortages in the Palestinian territories have worsened since Israel’s full-scale war and invasion of Gaza following the Hamas attacks on 7 October 2023. But Palestinians in both Gaza and the West Bank have faced systemic inequality when it comes to water accessibility long before the latest bout of deadly conflict broke out.

Israel’s targeting of water infrastructure in its war on Gaza is widely documented. In his 2024 essay ‘Weaponizing a Water Crisis: The Destruction of Water Supplies in Gaza’ published by the New Lines Institute for Strategy and Policy, Juan Cole, non-resident fellow of Democracy for the Arab World Now, said Israel’s tactics “turned what had been a perennial public health crisis into a humanitarian catastrophe.”

Cole compiled various reports detailing how Israel’s military had, by July 2024, damaged or destroyed 88% of Gaza’s water wells and taken the strip’s three desalination units “out of action.” Gaza has been facing a water crisis for two decades, fuelled by Israel’s blockade and the overexploitation of the Coastal Aquifer, which suffers from seawater infiltration and pollution. Just 4% of this groundwater source, which before the war provided 90% of the territory’s well water, is considered fit for human consumption.

Israeli soldiers made no secret of their tactics against water supplies in Gaza. In July 2024, a video circulated on social media allegedly showing Israeli soldiers destroying the Canada Well water storage facility in Tel al-Sultan, Rafah, southern Gaza.

Commenting on that video, UNICEF spokesperson James Elder told a July 2024 press conference that: “Until recently, that reservoir served thousands and thousands of internally displaced people who had sought refuge in the Rafah area. The intensity and scale of the damage and destruction caused to Gaza’s water infrastructure by the Israeli military is visible via satellite. It has been reported by newspapers and researchers as being used as a war tactic.” The events also prompted Canadian officials to demand an inquiry.

Health crisis

In the wake of the fragile ceasefire between Hamas and Israel on 15 January 2025, the picture remains bleak for Gaza. In a press statement, Oxfam International warned that Israel’s military assault has “destroyed 1,675 kilometres of water and sanitation networks.”

“In North Gaza and Rafah governorates, which have suffered the most destruction, less than 7% of pre-conflict water levels is available to people, heightening the spread of waterborne diseases. Just 5.7 litres per person per day is available, barely enough for one toilet flush,” the organisation said on 17 February. An initial assessment by Oxfam found that “80% of water and sanitation infrastructure across the Gaza Strip had been partially or entirely destroyed, including all six major wastewater treatment plants.”

The charity underlined the alarming health crisis in Gaza, noting that 46,000 cases of infectious diseases such as watery diarrhoea and respiratory infections were being reported each week, mainly in children.

In the statement, Oxfam’s Humanitarian Coordinator in Gaza, Clémence Lagouardat, said: “Rebuilding water and sanitation is vital for Gaza to have a path to normalcy after 15 months of horror. The ceasefire must hold, and fuel and aid must flow so Palestinians can rebuild their lives. Lasting peace for Palestinians and Israelis can only come through a permanent ceasefire and a just solution.”

Shortages in the West Bank

In the West Bank, Palestinians also face considerable long-term water shortages even though, in theory, the Mountain Aquifer on which much of the territory sits has sufficient water to supply the population, according to Fanack Water, which provides information on water resources in the Middle East and North Africa.

An October 2024 report by Fanack Water said the aquifer had an estimated 680 million cubic metres of renewable groundwater resources annually. This amount, divided between a population of 3.1 million, could technically provide 600 litres of water per person each day.

“In reality, Palestinians’ access to these resources is restricted, resulting in a net supply of just 60 litres per person per day in urban areas,” the report added. “In rural areas and those classified as Area C (controlled by Israel, accounting for around 60% of the West Bank) it is even less. In 150 communities in the West Bank, water consumption falls below 30 litres per person per day. This is significantly below the minimum of 100 litres per day as recommended by the World Health Organization.”

Israel’s control of Palestinian water

Majeda Alawneh, the General Director of the Palestinian Water Authority and advisory board member of AMWAJ, elaborated on the situation in an interview with REVOLVE.

“In Palestine, we face both long-term and short-term water scarcity, not because water is unavailable, but because we are denied the right to access it,” she said. “Israel manages approximately 85% of the shared water resources.”

Majeda Alawneh, Director General, PWA

Under the Oslo II Accords in 1995, Israel retained its share of over 80% the potential yield of the West Bank’s groundwater as part of an interim water deal. A final settlement on water distribution rights was due to be resolved following the permanent status negotiations four years later, in 1999. However, to date, these negotiations have yet to take place. As a result, Palestinian authorities in the West Bank are often forced to buy water from the national Israeli water company Mekorot to meet their needs. The distribution of this water, however, also falls under restrictions from Israeli authorities.

“If I need to transport water from areas with abundant resources to areas facing water shortages, I must first apply for a permit to do so. However, even this water—which is rightfully ours—comes at a high cost, as Israel controls the price, the quantity, and the allocation areas,” Alawneh told REVOLVE.

“For example, if I request water for the southern regions, they may refuse to supply it, claiming that their infrastructure is not capable of delivering water to those areas, despite the fact that these regions are facing severe water scarcity.”

Alawneh added that Israel’s monopoly and political power extends beyond water supply and affects Palestinians’ ability to develop water infrastructure, especially in Area C of the occupied West Bank.

“If we want to drill a new well, we must submit an application to the Joint Water Committee. However, this committee is currently non-functional, leading to long delays. Even if an application is approved, we must then seek further approval from the Civil Administration, which can take months or even years. Another major challenge in Palestine is wastewater treatment. To construct a wastewater treatment plant, we must first obtain a license—a process that is heavily restricted.”

This situation creates an added financial burden on Palestinian authorities as Israel imposes high taxes on wastewater that crosses into Israel-controlled areas for treatment.

“One of the most crucial solutions is advocacy for Palestinian water rights, especially in Gaza,” Alawneh told REVOLVE. “We need strong lobbying efforts to ensure Palestinians can access the share of water that is rightfully ours. Despite being located on our land, these water resources remain largely inaccessible to us. This issue requires international intervention, either through negotiations or an independent committee that can enforce fair access to water. However, achieving this also depends on the presence of political will.”

Restoring water sovereignty

Alawneh calls for international pressure not only for Palestinians have access to water under Palestinian territory, but also to ensure that authorities in the region are provided with the tools required to develop and rehabilitate their own water infrastructure.

 “While around 99% of people in the West Bank are connected to water systems, many do not receive a continuous supply. To prevent pipeline damage, water is rationed, with some areas of the territory only receiving water every 40 days. Others get it every two weeks or once a week,”

Majeda Alawneh, Director General, PWA

“Additionally, addressing wastewater management is critical. We need to expand wastewater collection systems and connect them to purification stations. Strong lobbying and advocacy efforts are also needed to secure the necessary approvals for building these purification stations. In Gaza, rebuilding the entire water infrastructure is essential to prevent future pollution and address the severe deterioration of water quality.”

The recent war between Hamas and Israel shed light on the direct destruction of water infrastructure in the Gaza Strip, but this severe flashpoint of violence followed decades of systemic water inequalities in both Gaza and the West Bank. Only by highlighting these inequalities and advocating for their dismantling, can water shortages be effectively addressed in a region where water is due to become an increasingly precious commodity.