In a report titled “Water as a Weapon,” Doctors Without Borders said on Tuesday that Israel intends to deprive the people of the Gaza Strip of access to the water necessary for life. The organization denounced what it described as a "collective punishment" campaign against the Palestinians, warning that the widespread destruction of civilian water infrastructure in Gaza, in addition to obstructing access to it, together constitute "an integral part of the genocide carried out by Israel" in the Strip, according to the organization's words.

Published on: 04/28/2026 - 11:10 Last updated: 04/28/2026 - 11:40

Doctors Without Borders said on Tuesday in a report entitled “Water as a Weapon” that Israel intends to deprive the people of the Gaza Strip of access to the water necessary for life, denouncing what it described as a campaign of “collective punishment” against the Palestinians.

The organization warned that the widespread destruction of civilian water infrastructure in Gaza, in addition to the obstruction of access to it, together constitute “an integral part of the genocide carried out by Israel” in the Strip.

Doctors Without Borders pointed out that the “engineered scarcity” of water occurs in parallel with “the killing of civilians, the destruction of health facilities, and the destruction of homes.”

The report, based on testimonies and data collected by the organization between 2024 and 2025, warned that all of this “imposes devastating and inhumane living conditions on the Palestinian population of Gaza.”

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"The Israeli authorities know that life ends without water," the organization's emergency director, Claire Sanfilippo, said in a statement.

"However, it has deliberately and systematically destroyed Gaza's water infrastructure, while at the same time continuing to prevent the entry of water-related supplies," she added.

Despite the ceasefire that entered into force in October of last year and largely stopped the war in Gaza that broke out shortly after Hamas’ attack on Israel in 2023, the Strip is still witnessing daily violence in light of the continuation of Israeli strikes and the exchange of accusations between the Israeli army and Hamas of violating the truce.

“About 90 percent of the infrastructure in Gaza was destroyed.”

The "Doctors Without Borders" report referred to data issued by the United Nations, the European Union, and the World Bank that Israel destroyed or damaged about 90% of the water and sanitation infrastructure in Gaza.

The organization said in its report that “water desalination plants, wells, pipelines, and sewage networks have become inoperable or inaccessible,” while several incidents were documented in which water trucks and their wells were exposed to fire or were destroyed.

According to San Filippo, "Palestinians were injured and killed simply trying to reach the water."

The organization indicated that, along with the local authorities, it is the largest producer and main distributor of drinking water in Gaza.

Last month, Médecins Sans Frontières provided more than 5.3 million liters of water per day, which meets the minimum needs of more than 407,000 people, or about a fifth of the Gaza Strip’s population.

"Ideal environment for diseases"

According to the organization, a third of its requests for vital water and sanitation supplies, including desalination units, pumps, water tanks, insecticides, chlorine and other water treatment chemicals, “were rejected or received no response.”

In this aspect, San Filippo warned that water deprivation, “combined with disastrous living conditions, severe overcrowding, and the collapse of the health system, creates an ideal environment for the spread of diseases.”

Doctors Without Borders called on Israel to "immediately restore water supply to the residents of Gaza at the required levels." It also urged its allies to "use their influence to pressure it to stop obstructing humanitarian access" to those in need.

France 24/AFP

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