July 23, 2014. Gaza’s sole power plant suffered a direct hit in ongoing hostilities in the Strip yesterday and today. One of the offices at the plant and two of the plant’s turbines were damaged. The plant has been shut down until further notice due both to the damage and also because operators at the plant are fearful for their safety should they return to the site. The International Committee of the Red Cross is reportedly attempting to coordinate repairs to the plant with Israel. The plant’s management is demanding guarantees from Israel that the plant won’t be targeted again..
Food prices.
Residents of Gaza report increases in the price of vegetables over the past few weeks, mainly resulting from the fact that farmers can’t reach and harvest their lands or get their produce to market. The price of tomatoes rose from 1.5 shekels to 4 shekels per kilogram and the price of cucumbers from 2 shekels to 5 per kilo. In some places, goods which require refrigeration such as yogurt, cream, and frozen meat and vegetables are not available due to shortages of electricity..
Infrastructure.
Out of 120 megawatts of electricity that Gaza purchases from Israel, only 48 MW are currently flowing to the Strip due to damage to infrastructure which has occurred during the hostilities. In addition, Gaza’s sole power plant, which had been producing 50 MW of electricity, is no longer functioning, having suffered direct hits and damage. The result is that hundreds of thousands of people in Gaza are completely without electricity, and hundreds of thousands more experience rolling blackouts of up to 22 hours per day. These numbers are likely to rise..
Due to the lack of electricity, water and sewage infrastructure is also functioning at less than capacity. Pumping of water to houses for domestic consumption and to medical facilities has been interrupted, as has pumping for sewage treatment and transport. Like electricity infrastructure, water and sewage infrastructure has also been damaged in the course of hostilities. Three technicians from Gaza’s water utility, the Coastal Municipalities Water Utility, were reportedly killed while on duty..
Infrastructure officials warn of a pending humanitarian and environmental catastrophe resulting from lack of access to water as well as severe health risks due to the overflow of raw sewage in neighborhoods and into the water supply..
About 80 million liters of untreated sewage flow directly into the sea every day. A third of Gaza’s water wells are not functioning because technicians are afraid to go out for maintenance and repair work and remaining wells are only working between 6-8 hours per day, due to lack of electricity..
According to reports from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Aid (OCHA), as of July 22, 2014, at 3pm, 1.2 million people – more than half of Gaza’s population – were affected by lack of adequate access to water and sanitation services..
In response to the humanitarian situation, Gisha and eleven other Israeli human rights organizations sent an urgent letter to Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon. The organizations demand that at the end of the hostilities, Israel remove all restrictions on movement to and from Gaza beyond those necessary for addressing Israel’s legitimate security concerns, and allow the entrance of spare parts, fuel and construction materials needed for the repair and maintenance of critical civilian infrastructure..
Crossings.
Kerem Shalom, the sole commercial crossing to Gaza, continues to operate under a restricted format for the transfer of fuel, food and medicine. Today, approximately 106 truckloads of goods entered the Strip. In addition, 23 truckloads of fuel and cooking gas were also transferred. Kerem Shalom operated from 9am this morning..
Erez Crossing is also operating under a restricted format for the transit of medical patients and their companions. Today, ten medical patients and their companions and seven medical emergencies will travel via Erez today, six of whom will go on to Jordan via the Allenby Bridge crossing..
Rafah Crossing operated from 9am to 3pm for the transit of casualties of the military operation, holders of foreign residency/citizenship and their families. Despite the fact that the crossing was also meant to operate under the same format yesterday, no one was permitted to leave the Strip via Rafah.