Doctors Without Borders Says Israel Is Using Water as a Weapon in Gaza Strip

JAKARTA - The international medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has accused Israel of systematically depriving Gazans of the water they need to survive, which is a "collective punishment" for Palestinians.

The destruction of extensive civilian water infrastructure in Gaza, coupled with the obstruction of access, constitutes "an integral part of Israel's genocide," the group said on Tuesday.

In a report titled "Water as a Weapon," MSF said "engineered scarcity" was occurring alongside "the direct killing of civilians, the destruction of health facilities, (and) the destruction of homes."

Overall, this amounts to "deliberate suppression of life-destroying and inhumane living conditions on the Palestinian population in Gaza," the report's warning said, based on testimonies and data collected by MSF in 2024 and 2025.

"The Israeli authorities know that without water, life will end," MSF Emergency Manager Claire San Filippo said in a statement, as reported by WAFA (30/4).

"However, they deliberately and systematically destroyed the water infrastructure in Gaza, while consistently blocking the water supply from entering," he said.

Although the October 2025 ceasefire halted most of Israel's genocidal war in Gaza that began after the 2023 Hamas attack, the Palestinian enclave is still plagued by Israeli violence on a daily basis as the attacks continue.

The MSF report points to data from the United Nations, the European Union, and the World Bank that show that Israel has destroyed or damaged nearly 90 percent of Gaza's water and sanitation infrastructure.

"Desalination plants, boreholes, pipes, and sewage systems have been made inoperable or inaccessible," he explained.

The charity documented several incidents where water trucks and clearly identified boreholes were shot or destroyed.

"Palestinians have been injured and killed simply for trying to access water," said San Filippo.

The charity said it was the largest producer and main distributor of drinking water in Gaza, in addition to local authorities.

Last month, MSF provided more than 5.3 million litres of water daily, meeting the minimum needs of more than 407,000 people, or a fifth of Gaza's population.

However, during the war, "Israeli military evacuation orders have prevented our teams from entering areas where we provide water for hundreds of thousands of people," said an MSF statement.

MSF said a third of its requests to bring in essential water and sanitation supplies, including water desalination units, pumps, water tanks, insect repellents, chlorine and other chemicals to treat water, had been "rejected or unanswered."

San Filippo also warned that water shortages, "combined with poor living conditions, extreme population density, and a collapsing health system, create a perfect storm for disease spread."

MSF called on Israel to "immediately restore water to the people of Gaza at the level needed."

The statement also urged Israel's allies to "use their influence to pressure Israel to stop obstructing humanitarian access."