Israeli war on Gaza destroys sewage systems, sparks disease outbreaks
5 Min Read
Palestinians in Gaza now face yet another disaster: living alongside piles of decomposing garbage—which attract rats, insects, and even snakes—and sewage that contaminates the land.
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Forcibly displaced Palestinian child Toleen Marshoud, who suffers from skin disease, sits at a makeshift tent camp in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza Strip, Monday, July 29, 2024. (AP)
The buildup of waste, stagnant sewage, and insect infestations has made the health conditions in the Gaza Strip unbearable, with many fearing the onset of epidemics as another facet of suffering to be added to the already dire humanitarian crisis amid the ongoing Israeli genocide which entered its 325 days.
In a related development, satellite images analyzed by BBC Arabic reveal what seems to be a significant sewage spill off the coast of Deir al-Balah.
The waters, along sections of Gaza’s Mediterranean coastline, have begun to turn brown, as health experts warn of the spread of open sewage and disease throughout the territory.
A local official said as quoted by BBC Arabic that displaced people in nearby camps are directly discharging their sewage into the sea, considering that the relentless Israeli bombardment has broken down the sewage infrastructure.
“It is because of the increase in the number of displaced people and many are connecting their own pipes to the rainwater drainage system,” said Abu Yazan Ismael Sarsour, head of the Deir al-Balah emergency committee.
Wim Zwijnenburg, an environmental expert with the Pax for Peace organization, told BBC Arabic that wastewater seemed to be flowing into the sea from nearby overcrowded camps after analyzing the satellite images.
The sewage discharge shown in images captured on August 2 covered an area of more than 2 square kilometers (0.8 square miles). Satellite images indicate that the discharge first appeared in June and steadily expanded over the following two months. It remains unclear if the coastal pollution is continuing to grow, as more recent satellite images are not available.
Israeli bombardment causes collapse of Gaza’s wastewater infrastructure
A UN environmental report concluded in June that intense Israeli bombardment has resulted in the collapse of Gaza’s wastewater management infrastructure.
Meanwhile, health experts are raising concerns about the spread of waterborne diseases following the partial paralysis of a 10-month-old baby who contracted polio, marking Gaza's first case in 25 years.
UN and World Health Organization (WHO) officials have called for two one-week ceasefires to facilitate the vaccination of 600,000 children in Gaza. However, observers noted that delivering vaccines will likely face the same obstacles affecting other humanitarian aid, leading to slow and difficult distribution. Additionally, the Israeli systemic destruction of the healthcare system in Gaza poses a significant challenge to any vaccination efforts.
'People are basically living adjacent to puddles of sewage'
On this issue, Oxfam told BBC Arabic that a quarter of Gaza's population has already fallen ill due to waterborne diseases.
“We are seeing a catastrophic health crisis unfolding in front of our eyes," said Lama Abdul Samad, a water and sanitation expert at Oxfam.
“Polio is a waterborne disease and it is directly linked to the sanitation situation,” Samad stressed.
“The sanitation infrastructure has been damaged severely to the point that it is flooding the streets and the neighborhoods, and people are basically living adjacent to puddles of sewage," she added.
New photos and satellite images reviewed by BBC Arabic reveal that the issue of untreated sewage in Gaza has been progressively worsening. The Sheikh Radwan Lagoon in northern Gaza, previously a source of clean rainwater, now appears to be filled with polluted water.
Abdul Samad, after examining the images, confirmed that the lagoon had been tainted by raw sewage. Residents in the vicinity told BBC Arabic's Gaza Lifeline emergency radio service about the overflowing wastewater, the foul odor, and the presence of rodents emerging from the lagoon.
“Raw sewage is running into our property because of the overflowing Sheikh Radwan Lagoon,” Ibrahim Ramzi said.
It is worth noting that polio is only a fraction of the health crisis Gaza is grappling with. Earlier this month, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, reported 40,000 cases of Hepatitis A—transmitted through contaminated water—since the onset of the war, compared to just 85 cases during the same period before the war. Public health experts are also sounding alarms about the risk of a potential cholera outbreak.
Aid agencies reported that doctors in Gaza are facing difficulties treating a high number of cases of dysentery, pneumonia, and severe skin diseases due to the collapse of the healthcare system.
The UN estimates that nearly all of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents have been forcibly displaced since last autumn. Many are living in shelters where there is only one toilet available for every 600 people, as reported by a World Health Organization official in July.
Since October 7, "Israel" killed at least 40,435 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. It is worth noting that The Lancet reported back in July that over 186,000 Palestinians may be killed, either directly or indirectly, by the ongoing Israeli occupation's war on Palestine's Gaza Strip.
