UN: More than 2 million people at risk as water runs out across the Gaza Strip
The United Nations has reported that more than 2 million people are at risk due to the depletion of water supplies across the Gaza Strip.
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United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini issued a written statement regarding the situation following Israel's decision on October 8 to cut off water, electricity, food, and other essential services to the blockaded Gaza Strip.
Noting that more than 2 million people are at risk due to the depletion of water across the Gaza Strip, Lazzarini stated, "No humanitarian aid has been allowed into Gaza for a week. This has now become a matter of life and death. Fuel must be delivered to Gaza to provide water for more than 2 million people." he said.
''WATER HAS RUN OUT''
Lazzarini stated that clean water has run out because water facilities and public water networks in the Gaza Strip are no longer operational, noting that people are being forced to use contaminated water drawn from wells.
"This increases the risk of waterborne diseases.Using the phrase, Lazzarini emphasized that the power outages in Gaza since October 11 have also affected the water supply.
Pointing out that thousands of people have flocked to the south of the city after Israel warned civilians living in northern Gaza to leave their homes, Lazzarini shared the information that drinking water has also run out at the UN base in the southern Gaza Strip, where UNRWA continues its operations.
NEARLY 1 MILLION PEOPLE DISPLACED
Emphasizing that hundreds of thousands of Gazan civilians have been displaced in just the last 12 hours, Lazzarini stated,The migration of people to the southern regions of the Gaza Strip continues. Nearly 1 million people have been displaced in Gaza in just one week." he said.
Underlining that fuel trucks must reach Gaza, Lazzarini said,The only way for people to access safe drinking water is through fuel. Otherwise, people, including small children, the elderly, and women, will begin to die from severe dehydration. I call for the immediate lifting of the siege on humanitarian aid." they assessed.