WHO reiterates warnings of dire water shortage in Gaza

Tel Aviv [Israel], October 25: The World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday repeated its warnings of the dire situation in the Gaza Strip, pointing to a particularly precarious water shortage, as the densely populated Palestinian territory has been under siege for more than two weeks.
On Tuesday, WHO regional director Rick Brennan said the WHO estimates that there are only 3 litres of water per person per day left, whereas the minimum requirement per person is 15 litres, for drinking, cooking and personal hygiene, Brennan said.
Hardly anyone has taken a proper shower or bath there in recent weeks, he said. With about 1 million displaced people, toilets are a huge problem, he said. Diarrhoeal diseases, skin and respiratory infections are only a matter of time, Brennan added.
Some 200 women give birth every day, but they cannot find safe spaces to deliver their babies or reach hospitals in case of complications.
The UN said that although 54 trucks with relief supplies have arrived in the Gaza Strip since Saturday, it is not enough.
Urgently needed fuel for generators, for example, was not included in the shipments. Instead, rice and lentils were delivered, which cannot be cooked because people don't have access to the water and gas they need for cooking, the relief agency said.
Meanwhile, Israel may have agreed to postpone its much-anticipated ground offensive in the Gaza Strip, according to a Tuesday report by news portal Axios, citing two Israeli officials.
Source: Qatar Tribune