Water in the West Bank

Many rural areas in Palestine are not connected to water mains. Their wells and cisterns collect rainwater during the months of downpour in winter. When this is insufficient to last them through the dry summer months they have to buy water, sometimes at extortionate prices, from local Israeli settlements. On several occasions Israeli settlers have poisoned Palestinian wells, and settlers or soldiers have destroyed Palestinian cisterns.

Each summer Palestinian farmers whose wells have dried up can watch neighbouring Israeli settlers sprinkling their lawns or enjoying their swimming pools.

Clearly any just peace settlement would require an equitable distribution of available water. Already Israel relies increasingly on restricting water use and on desalination.

The present situation should be as unthinkable as if a British Water Company were to impose different water rates on the basis of one's parentage. The necessary administrative resources for just allocations should not be excessive.

A Joint Water Committee, with equal representation from Israeli and Palestinian bodies, already exists. It was established under the Oslo Accords to coordinate water supplies in the West Bank, but in practice the Civil Administration (part of the Israeli army) limits the provision and depth of new Palestinian wells, and the volume that can be extracted.

See statement from Ecumenical Water Network