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Gaza’s high population strains water supply

Gaza authorities are establishing water desalination plants to meet the demands of the increasing population.
Palestinians youths who fled their neighbourhood during the Israeli offensive, fetch water from a  container after returning to their damaged home in the Beit Hanoun area during a 72-hour ceasefire, Gaza City, August 11, 2014. Israeli negotiators arrived in Cairo on Monday to meet with Egyptian mediators who are holding talks on ending a month-old Gaza war between Israel and Palestinian militants, sources at the airport and foreign ministry said. The two sides agreed on Sunday to a new 72-hour ceasefire to
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GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Fethiya Deeb lives in al-Shati refugee camp west of Gaza City and complains about the high salinity of the water that comes to her home from the wells, which are run by the Gaza City municipality. Deeb told Al-Monitor that she and her 17-member family "need a large amount of water on a daily basis. All we receive is salty water that is similar to seawater. We cannot use it for a lot of things. So we are forced to buy our potable water."

Gaza Strip residents suffer from poor quality of household water. Mazen al-Banna, an engineer and vice president of the Palestinian Water Authority in the Gaza Strip, said Gaza's water situation is difficult due to limited water sources and the small land area of Gaza, about 365 square kilometers (141 square miles). Gaza represents less than 1.4% of the area of ​​Palestine, but is home to 2 million people, or 17% of the Palestinian population.

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