Bateh, Fuad

Cascão, Ana Elisa

de Châtel, Francesca

Fantini, Emanuele

Flowers, Cara

Hussein, Hussam

McCaffrey, Stephen

McIntyre, Owen

Meland, Alex

Nagheeby, Mohsen

Nicol, Alan

Rieu-Clarke, Alistair

Stephan, Raya Marina

Tawfik, Rawia

English

Oxford University Research Archive

See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/374848540Israel’s Weaponization of Water: An Urgent Call to Provide Full Access toWater Services in GazaChapter · October 2023CITATIONS0READS12914 authors, including:Mohsen NagheebyNewcastle University15 PUBLICATIONS   69 CITATIONS   SEE PROFILERaya Marina Stephan73 PUBLICATIONS   226 CITATIONS   SEE PROFILEAna Elisa CascãoDeutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit27 PUBLICATIONS   839 CITATIONS   SEE PROFILEOwen McIntyreUniversity College Cork133 PUBLICATIONS   777 CITATIONS   SEE PROFILEAll content following this page was uploaded by Mohsen Nagheeby on 22 October 2023.The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.OpenEdition SearchAll OpenEditionIN THE NEWSIsrael’s Weaponization ofWater: An Urgent Call to Provide FullAccess to Water Services in GazaBY MOHSEN · PUBLISHED 19/10/2023 · UPDATED 19/10/2023Mohsen Nagheeby, Alistair Rieu-Clarke, StephenMcCaffrey, Raya Marina Stephan; Ana Elisa Cascão;Owen McIntyre, Alan Nicol, Alex Meland, HussamHussein, Francesca de Châtel, Rawia Tawfik, CaraFlowers, Emanuele Fantini, Fuad Bateh.19/10/2023, 22:03Page 1 of 8“Wadi Gaza 2010” (Credits: @CaraFlowers)The weaponization of water and its infrastructure has become increasingly evidentin recent armed conflicts. These acts seriously threaten the lives of the civilianpopulation, especially the most vulnerable groups, such as children. Two days afterHamas launched its attack, Israel imposed a “total” blockade and cut the watersupplies into the already besieged Gaza Strip –home to approximately 2.3 millionpeople. On 9 October, Yoav Gallant, the Israeli Defence Minister, announced “acomplete siege on Gaza …. No electricity, no food, no water, no gas – it’s allclosed”.This might be my last email to you [… while] we [with my wife and my five kids]have been deprived completely from water, electricity and food […]. Please […]do whatever you can to stop the genocide […] [we] may not be the same colouras [you] but [we] are not ‘human animals’.– A Palestinian academic living in Gaza.19/10/2023, 22:03Page 2 of 8The people of Gaza are in terrible peril now and the blockage of water suppliesonly compounds the misery of the millions of civilians in Gaza. In this post, we jointhe call to both parties to stop the war, and seek to briefly highlight some notableimplications of Israel’s act of water blockage. We refer our discussion to therelevant framework of international humanitarian law in relation to freshwatersupplies, in particular the draft Geneva List of Principles on the Protection ofWater Infrastructure that sets out international rules that are applicable duringarmed conflicts and makes valuable recommendations. We urgently call forsolidarity with all people on both sides of the war. Millions of defenceless people,including women and children in Gaza, face a deepening humanitarian crisis, acatastrophic chain of events, and a lack of the most basic human needs – water andfood.Even in times of conflict, States are obligated to protect the fundamental rights ofcivilians by prohibiting the use of water as a means of warfare, and respectingwater as a fundamental human right.A prohibition of the use of water as a means ofwarfareThe International Law Association in the Madrid Rules of 1976 addressed the useof water infrastructure, and water itself, in the context of armed conflict. Article IIIsets forth specific prohibition for the protection of the civilian population and theenvironment:“The diversion of waters for military purposes should be prohibited when it wouldcause disproportionate suffering to the civilian population or substantial damageto the ecological balance of the area concerned. A diversion that is carried out inorder to damage or destroy the minimum conditions of survival of the civilianpopulation or the basic ecological balance of the area concerned or in order toterrorize the population should be prohibited in any case.”The following proposal during the drafting of the UN 1997 WatercoursesConvention on the use of water and water infrastructure as means of warfare isapplicable in this case:“Withholding, by diversion or other means, of water from a system State so as toplace in jeopardy the survival of the civilian population or to imperil the viabilityof the environment is prohibited in peacetime and in time of armed conflict.”19/10/2023, 22:03Page 3 of 8Article 29 of the Watercourses Convention also applies:“International watercourses and related installations, facilities and other worksshall enjoy the protection accorded by the principles and rules of international lawapplicable in international and non-international armed conflict and shall not beused in violation of those principles and rules.”More recently, the 2019 Geneva List of Principles on the Protection of WaterInfrastructure has restated the obligation upon States to, “refrain from using waterinfrastructure and water-related infrastructure as a means of warfare”.The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the NearEast (UNRWA) has confirmed that water has now become a “matter of life anddeath” for people in Gaza. While Israel’s act of water blockage has no direct‘military purpose’, it is, as announced by Israeli military authorities, seen as amilitary tactic to put in “jeopardy the survival of the civilian population”, and toput pressure on people in Gaza. It is therefore unlawful.Water is a fundamental human rightThe human right to water requires that everyone should have “access to sufficient,safe, acceptable, physically accessible and affordable water for personal anddomestic use” (UNGA Res 72/178 (29 January 2018), § 2.). All States are obliged torespect the human right to water through both positive and negativeobligations. Under Articles 11(1) and 12(1) of the 1966 International Covenant onEconomic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), the human right to water is legallybinding.General Comment 15 – adopted in 2002 by the UN Committee on Economic, Socialand Cultural Rights (CESCR), which monitors the implementation of the ICESCR –declares that “the human right to water is indispensable for leading a life in humandignity. It is a prerequisite for the realization of other human rights”. The rights towater and sanitation are also included in other instruments, including theConvention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women;Convention on the Rights of the Child and Convention on the Rights of Personswith Disabilities.General Comment 15 by the CESCR clearly stated that States, in accordance withinternational humanitarian law, must refrain from “limiting access to, ordestroying, water services and infrastructure as a punitive measure” during armed19/10/2023, 22:03Page 4 of 8conflicts.A shortage of water and lack of access to sanitation may cause or aggravate otherdevastating crises, such as malnutrition and spread of diseases. This means thatdepriving people of water and sanitation during armed conflict may violate otherhuman rights, which in turn can affect vulnerable groups, such as women andchildren, disproportionately.  General Comment 15 also makes a link between the fulfilment of the right to waterand the realization of the right to adequate food. Additional Protocol I, Art. 54(1)and Additional Protocol II, Art. 14 to the Geneva Conventions, specifically stipulatethat the use of starvation of the civilian population as a method of warfare must beprohibited. This rule is part of customary international law. Starvation not onlymeans “killing by deprivation of water and food”, but also the deprivation of anyessential commodity or thing necessary for survival. Therefore, internationalhumanitarian law prohibits the use of starvation of the civilian population both ininternational and non-international armed conflicts.Under Art. 49(1) and Art. 51(5)(b) of Additional Protocol I to the GenevaConventions, such “acts of violence against the adversary, whether in offence or indefence” is disproportionate if it “may be expected to cause incidental loss ofcivilian life, injury to civilians, damage to civilian objects, or a combinationthereof, which would be excessive in relation to the concrete and direct militaryadvantage anticipated.” The devastating effects of Israel’s water blockage to thecivilian population in Gaza is unequivocally disproportionate. Furthermore, Israel,as the occupying power, is also obliged to respect, protect and fulfil the humanrights of Palestinians. The government of Israel’s act of cutting Gaza’s water, food,and electricity supplies is therefore in violation of its international law obligations,conventional and customary, under both international humanitarian law andinternational human rights law.In addition to the violation of international humanitarian law and internationalhuman rights law, according to the Art. 85(3)(c) of Additional Protocol I to theGeneva Conventions, the illegal act of cutting water, food and power to civilians inGaza raises significant questions relating to war crimes.We call upon the government of Israel to respect its obligations underinternational law, to provide full access to water services to Gaza, and torefrain from targeting necessary water infrastructure and related personnel.19/10/2023, 22:03Page 5 of 8We ask both parties to stop the war. As human beings we are all dependent on water for life. To remain human, we must do all we can to ensure the humanitarian access to water for all the people in Gaza. We call on the international community and on all States and relevant actors to join us in this call.19/10/2023, 22:03Page 6 of 8View publication stats

Israel's weaponization of water: an urgent call to provide full access to water services in Gaza

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Israel's weaponization of water: an urgent call to provide full access to water services in Gaza

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