NEW YORK CITY (Dispatches) – A group of UN human rights experts has accused the Zionist regime’s authorities of deliberately depriving Palestinians in Gaza of access to clean drinking water. They described this alleged action as a grave violation of international law and a potential crime against humanity.
“Israel is using thirst as a weapon to kill Palestinians,” the experts said. “Cutting off water and food is a silent but lethal bomb that kills mostly children and babies.”
The independent experts, who are appointed by the UN Human Rights Council, said that water and sanitation systems in Gaza have been systematically targeted throughout the Zionist regime’s ongoing military campaign.
Since the conflict began in October 2023, Zionist troops have destroyed or severely damaged wells, pipelines, desalination plants and sewage networks. According to the UN, nearly 90 percent of the territory’s water infrastructure is no longer functional, leaving more than 90 percent of the population without reliable access to safe water supplies.
As summer temperatures soar and hygiene conditions deteriorate rapidly, fatalities from dehydration are increasing and outbreaks of waterborne disease are spreading. Most of the 2 million residents of Gaza have been displaced, with many of them forced to drink contaminated water and live without even basic sanitation.
“This catastrophe was not only predictable, it was predicted,” the UN experts said. “The deliberate denial of water and essential supplies is part of a pattern of collective punishment and may amount to extermination under international law.”
The experts referred to an advisory opinion issued by the International Court of Justice in July 2024, which reaffirmed the Zionist regime’s obligations as an occupying power to ensure civilians are able to access adequate supplies of food and water.
Instead, the experts noted, the regime’s authorities have further reduced the already limited flow of emergency water deliveries, and continue to block essential shipments of fuel required to power desalination and sanitation systems.
The UN Relief and Works Agency, the main humanitarian agency in Gaza, has warned that it will be forced to close several of its remaining wells entirely unless immediate authorization is granted for fuel deliveries to the territory. These sources currently provide hundreds of thousands of liters of water to people each day for drinking and hygiene purposes.