Gazans fear worst after Hamas bans water wells
The Hamas-affiliated Water and Environmental Quality Authority to ban the digging of wells without a license, as many Gazans suffer from a lack of potable water.
![Palestinians fill bottles of water for home consumption at the Rafah refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip, April 8, 2021.](/sites/default/files/styles/article_hero_medium/public/2021-08/GettyImages-1232175407.jpg?h=a5ae579a&itok=XyK6MsbC)
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Palestinians living in the border areas of the Gaza Strip rely on wells to secure drinking water and to irrigate their crops, as the Hamas-run local municipalities fail to assume their responsibility to supply water to these areas.
In an Aug. 25 statement, the Hamas-affiliated Water and Environment Quality Authority announced a ban against the digging of water wells in all Gaza governorates, under the pretext of fighting a severe decline in groundwater levels and quality due to over-exploitation of the aquifer into which the wells are drilled.