Not just the lack of food and medicine. After 7 months of bombings which caused the destruction of the main infrastructures, in Gaza Strip the hygienic and sanitary conditions are terrible. In this video testimony an operator from Oxfam which is located in the south of the Strip shows a large puddle with waste water on the street: “The smell is oppressive, unbearable. As you can see, the hygiene situation is terrible.” AND the increase in temperatures it only makes the situation worse. In the tents where hundreds of thousands of people have taken refuge, the numbers have increased insects and mosquitoes. “All of this is a risk to people’s health.”
According to Oxfam, which raised the alarm, the invasion of Rafah, where the supply of drinking water was interrupted, could cause new serious epidemics in Gaza in the coming weeks. “There are over 350 thousand people fleeing to already overcrowded and collapsing shelters and refugee camps in other areas of the Strip, while the population is without food and fuel due to the closure of border crossings and the streets are flooded with waste and rivers of sewagewhich overflow from the sewers.”
Israeli attacks have already caused at least 10,000 years of damage 210 million dollars to water and sanitation infrastructure across Gaza, destroying around 87% of it, satellite images reveal. Among these also the systems installed by the NGO. “At least 5 of our facilities, which provided clean water and essential sanitation services to over 180 thousand people a day, have been severely destroyed since October 7 and seven others have been damaged. – explains Paolo Pezzati, spokesperson for humanitarian crises of Oxfam Italia – Our colleagues in Gaza tell us of a desperate situation. The population is currently forced to drinkdirty and contaminated water, suffers from malnutrition and the children are constantly bitten by the insects that swarm everywhere. Under these conditions new epidemics of hepatitis A and cholera will be inevitable. They are diseases that thrive in overcrowded places without adequate sanitation. At this moment, as temperatures rise, hundreds of thousands of people are forced to live in inhuman conditions, with the fear of dying at any moment under the bombing. A situation that could worsen with the invasion of Rafah.
“Our healthcare teams have been treating skin infections and cases of dysentery for months, but in recent weeks we have detected thousands of cases of hepatitis A and other gastrointestinal and respiratory diseases. – he adds Celine Maayeh, Advocacy and Research Officer of Juzoor, Oxfam’s partner organization in Gaza, working in over 50 shelters for displaced people and in health centers in the north of the Strip – Even if so far we have managed to treat them, the heat and the accumulation of waste and sewage are creating the perfect mix, for a real health catastrophe that our health teams alone cannot address.”
“Gaza’s entire water supply and wastewater management system is close to total collapse, as the damage is so extensive. – points out Monther Shoblaq, CEO della Coastal Municipalities Water Utility, another Oxfam partner organisation, responsible for water supply and operation of sanitation in Gaza – There is no energy to operate water wells, desalination and wastewater treatment plants. We are doing everything we can, but the situation is desperate.”
The story Voices from Gaza is part of a series of testimonies collected by Oxfam operators and managers in Gaza who ilfattoquotidiano.it decided to publish. The goal is to have a first-person account from civilians in Gaza, those who are paying the highest price for the conflict.
THE PETITION – Oxfam has launched a signature collection (you can join here) per “stop all arms transfers, components and ammunition used to fuel the crisis in Gaza”. An appeal addressed to governments not to be “accomplices to the continuous violations of international lawfulfilling their legal obligations and ensuring a permanent ceasefire as soon as possible.”