Israel Blocks Gaza Flood Repairs Amid Rising Death Toll
UNICEF and the Board of Peace accuse Israel of blocking critical drainage repairs and winter aid as seasonal floods kill four people in the Gaza Strip.
Heavy seasonal rains have flooded tens of thousands of tents across the Gaza Strip, killing four people, including three children and one woman in Deir al-Balah. The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) warned that the failure to repair the Sheikh Radwan stormwater basin in Gaza City creates a high risk of toxic sewage flooding the streets and tents of displaced families.
UNICEF officials reported that the Coordinator for Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) rejected a $3 million rehabilitation plan for the basin. The project had been developed over a year in coordination with Israeli authorities and the US-brokered Board of Peace. COGAT and the Israeli prime minister's office cited security concerns, arguing that dual-use equipment could be used by Hamas to expand its military arsenal. COGAT further stated that reconstruction efforts can only begin after Hamas fully disarms.
The Board of Peace, an organization created by the Donald Trump administration, called Israel's response to the flooding insufficient and demanded the immediate entry of sanitation, drainage, and shelter supplies. The World Health Organization added that nearly one million displaced people face medium or high flood risk, which increases the threat of communicable diseases. British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband described the situation as heartbreaking and stated the UK government would not stand by while the humanitarian crisis worsens.
