Israel Denies French Water Treatment Plant From Reaching Gaza

Protocol 1
Additional to the Geneva Conventions, 1977

PART IV: CIVILIAN POPULATION

Section 1: General Protection Against Effects of Hostilities

Article 54: Protection of Objects Indispensable to the Survival of the Civilian Population

1. Starvation of civilians as a method of warfare is prohibited
2. It is prohibited to attack, destroy, remove or render useless objects indispensable to the survival of the civilian population, such as foodstuffs, agricultural areas for the production of foodstuffs, crops, livestock, drinking water installations and supplies and irrigation works, for the specific purpose of denying them for their sustenance value to the civilian population or to the adverse Party, whatever the motive, whether in order to starve out civilians, to cause them to move away, or for any other motive.
3. The prohibitions in paragraph 2 shall not apply to such of the objects covered by it as are used by an adverse Party:
   1. as sustenance solely for the members of its armed forces; or
   2. if not as sustenance, then in direct support of military action, provided, however, that in no event shall actions against these objects be taken which may be expected to leave the civilian population with such inadequate food or water as to cause its starvation or force its movement.
4. These objects shall not be made the object of reprisals.
5. In recognition of the vital requirements of any Party to the conflict in the defense of its national territory against invasion, derogation from the prohibitions contained in paragraph 2 may be made by a Party to the conflict within such territory under its own control where required by imperative military necessity.

The collapse of Gaza's water and waste water sector: Grave breaches of international humanitarian law and serious violations of international human rights law

Source: Al Mezan Center for Human Rights

Date: 20 Jan 2009

Following twenty two consecutive days of Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip, water and sanitation services and facilities are on the brink of collapse. The water and sanitation sector was already in a dire state following the 18 month blockade on Gaza, which had prevented the entry of material necessary for construction and repair of water and sanitation facilities as well as the fuel and electricity necessary to operate essential services such as sewage pumping stations and water wells. Israel's aerial bombardment of the Gaza Strip beginning on the 27 December 2008 and the ground invasion beginning on the 3 January 2009 have turned an already desperate humanitarian situation into a catastrophe.

Currently more than half a million residents of the Gaza Strip (a third of the population) have no access to clean water. Some have been without water for over ten days. The Costal Municipalities Water Utility (CMWU) the water sector service provider in Gaza, has announced that it is no longer able to maintain services in the water and waste water sector due to concerns for staff safety and an acute shortage of spare parts, materials, equipment, electricity and fuel required to rehabilitate facilities and operate services. FURTHER>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Water system at center of Gaza meeting

Friday, January 30, 2009

PARIS — The French Foreign Ministry said on January 30 that Israel has refused to allow a French-made water purification system into Gaza, Press TV reported on January 30. French Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Eric Chevallier said the Israeli ambassador was summoned to Paris to explain why the water treatment system was denied access. He said Israel’s explanation was not satisfactory, according to the report. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs recently warned that Israel’s recent 23-day military attack on Gaza pushed the Palestinian territory's sewage system to the brink of collapse and thus increased risks of groundwater contamination. This month, the World Bank referred to the situation as a “severe public health crisis,” as WaterTech Online™ reported. “The most dangerous thing is the contamination of drinking water with sewage. We need an international organization like the World Health Organization to investigate the matter,” Monther Shoblak, head of the Coastal Municipalities Water Utility (CMWU), said in the Press TV report. The CMWA supplies water to Gaza. To read the full report, click here. For related information, click here. Source

Half a million Palestinians in Gaza without water: UNRWA | AUDIO

For more information, link to the Palestinian Water Authority

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Israeli strikes destroy Blair project

Video of the World Bank water treatment plant which Israel destroyed.