Monday 21 / October / 2024
Cairo: The Arab League has asserted that the Israeli occupation is unmercifully pursuing the policy of scorched earth in Gaza Strip.
It added that the massive destruction inflicted upon the vital infrastructures underscores an abhorrent intention to unleash devastation and make the remaining Palestinian territories uninhabitable by thinking that unleashing the despair through the barbaric punishment policies will trigger the Palestinians to surrender.
Addressing the sixth session of the Cairo Water Week 2023 conference on Sunday, the Secretary-General of Arab League, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, said the history will once again record that Israel has been mercilessly enforcing the scorched earth policies through targeting water stations, drainage networks and hospitals in Gaza from north to the south utilizing the most lethal weapons to forcibly evacuate the Palestinians in pursuit of liquidating their cause at the expense of their rights and neighbouring countries.
Once again, the Israeli occupation is perpetrating a new crime in full view of the world to be further added to the Israeli record which is full of violations that have been committed since Nakba disaster in full intention to complete its plot aimed at dislodging Gaza inhabitants who are originally refugees to seek refuge once again, Aboul Gheit pointed out.
He added that the Israeli occupation is doing so through bombing the Palestinians indiscriminately and depriving them of the minimum human rights, such as the right to water, food, and medical treatment.
The Secretary-General of Arab League pointed out that the Israeli occupation is targeting the Palestinian infrastructure as it has done before in South Lebanon and Syria without restrictions or honoring the rules of international humanitarian law in which Article 54-(2) of the Additional Protocol No. 1 which prohibits attacking, destroying, removing, or rendering useless objects indispensable to the survival of civilians; such as water utilities and irrigation networks.
He noted the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court which considers the destruction of infrastructure and water networks as war crimes, alongside many more international charters that overtly prohibit using water as a weapon against civilians. He added that this is not the first time the Israeli occupation uses water as a weapon, and it did not stop at stealing Arab water either but has systematically targeted entire water facilities acknowledging the criticality of this vital source in life, stability, and development, in addition to intentionally squeezing the Palestinians and keeping them under the mercy of thirsty, hunger and diseases.
Aboul Gheit noted the studies carried out by the Arab Water Experts Network (AWEN) operating under the umbrella of the Arab Ministerial Water Council to assess water sector in Gaza. He pointed out that the findings of these studies were submitted in July 2022 to the headquarters of the Arab League.
The findings raised the alarm about the catastrophic situations water and drainage networks were exposed to due to the recurrent Israeli assaults. He stressed that the situation in Gaza has been catastrophic for two years ago, let alone the current situation which is full of scary and horrific scenes.
The latest assault carried out by the Israeli occupation exposed the positions of those who pursue double standards and justify the crimes of targeting water and drainage networks perpetrated by the Israeli occupation as a self-defense, while they come across again and denounce these acts, he wondered.
Aboul Gheit pointed out that the Cairo Water Week 2023 conference is the most prominent event in the Arab region, lauding its outcomes aimed at enhancing the joint Arab action process in water field.
He added that the conference includes a preparatory Arab meeting for the Global Water Forum which is slated to be hosted by Indonesia in May 2024, along with a meeting of the high level joint technical committee for water and agriculture.
