It’s been more than a decade since the last Israeli resident left Gaza, but this week the Jewish State once again invested major funding in dealing with basic infrastructure for the region in response to the extreme neglect of the population by its Hamas terrorist rulers, and its Palestinian Authority political overlords from Ramallah.
The Israel Water Authority was forced to install a pipeline to channel the wastewater from the northern Gaza neighborhoods of Beit Lahiya and Beit Hanoun at a cost of some $11 million ( NIS 40 million) to a sewage treatment plant in Sderot and communities in the Sha’ar HaNegev Regional Council district near the Erez Crossing.
The reason?
The political games being played against each other between the Ramallah and Gaza governments in the Palestinian Authority, combined with the Hamas have led to the collapse of Gaza’s only sewage treatment facility due to an inadequate power supply.
Ramallah’s Mahmoud Abbas has been chopping the payments to Israel for electricity to the region. Hamas, which collects payments from its local population for the energy resource, likewise has been refusing to transfer those funds to Ramallah to pay the bill. For the local Gaza resident, the bottom line is the same. No electricity means no sewage processing plant – and pretty soon, no fresh drinking water or sanitary conditions either.
But that horrific scenario is also beginning to affect southern Israelis as well.
Wastewater from the area has begun to pollute the groundwater in southern Israel as Gazans began instead to drain their sewage into Nahal Hanoun.
The waterway, which flows into Israel before heading out to the Mediterranean Sea, began to flood due to the excess wastewater and instead began contaminating surrounding groundwater in the coastal aquifer from which Israel’s national water company, Mekorot, pumps drinking water. Ground water pumping stations were closed due to the level of contamination.
Despite United Nations pleas for both sides of the Palestinian Authority conflict to work on reconciliation and unity, neither has managed to set aside their differences to work together for the good of their people. They’re too busy scrabbling over money. And hate.