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Scene. Published by IMEMC News
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by IMEMC News
Aug 22, 2025

Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières, MSF) has reported that more than 60 desalination plants across the Gaza Strip have been knocked out of service due to sustained Israeli bombardment since October 2023.

In a statement released this week, the organization warned that the destruction of these critical facilities has plunged Gaza deeper into a humanitarian catastrophe, depriving millions of residents of access to safe drinking water.

MSF stressed that the targeting of water infrastructure is not incidental, but part of a systematic campaign to deny Palestinians the basic conditions for survival. “Israel is deliberately depriving Gaza’s residents of water, food, and medical care,” the statement read, describing the blockade and bombardment as tools of collective punishment and forced displacement.

The collapse of Gaza’s water system has had devastating consequences. According to local authorities and humanitarian agencies, more than 85 percent of the Strip’s freshwater sources are now inaccessible.

Central desalination stations, once responsible for producing tens of thousands of cubic meters of potable water daily, have ceased operations due to damage to pipelines, generators, and electrical systems. Fuel shortages and direct strikes on backup power units have made repairs nearly impossible.

In displacement camps such as Al-Mawasi and Nuseirat, families now rely on murky, contaminated water collected from makeshift wells or the sea. Per capita water consumption has dropped from 84 liters per day before the war to just 3 liters—far below the emergency threshold set by the World Health Organization.

This has led to a surge in waterborne diseases, including diarrhea, skin infections, and kidney failure, especially among children and the elderly.

MSF teams operating in Gaza report that their clinics are overwhelmed with patients suffering from dehydration and illness linked to unsafe water. With sanitation systems also collapsing, the risk of cholera and other epidemics is rising. Aid workers warn that without immediate restoration of water access and protection of civilian infrastructure; the crisis will escalate beyond repair.

The destruction of desalination plants is part of a broader pattern of attacks on civilian infrastructure, including hospitals, bakeries, and shelters. Humanitarian organizations have called for an immediate ceasefire and unrestricted access to fuel, medical supplies, and water purification equipment. MSF reiterated that the deliberate targeting of life-sustaining systems violates international humanitarian law and must be urgently addressed by the global community.

On Saturday, Israeli airstrikes killed at least 37 Palestinians and injured dozens more in Gaza City, where bombardments have intensified.

The Gaza Health Ministry also reported two deaths from starvation in the past 24 hours, bringing the total number of fatalities across the enclave that day to 71.

These deaths come amid growing international alarm over the worsening humanitarian crisis.

Famine conditions are deepening, and access to food, water, and medical care remains severely restricted.

Despite Israel’s Foreign Ministry dismissing reports of famine as “misinformation,” the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC)—the world’s leading authority on hunger crises—has officially confirmed that famine conditions are present in Gaza Governorate.

This declaration is backed by more than twenty United Nations agencies, humanitarian organizations, and international governments.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres described the crisis as “a man-made disaster, a moral indictment, and a failure of humanity itself.”

He emphasized that famine is not simply the absence of food, but the deliberate collapse of systems essential for survival—water, healthcare, shelter, and humanitarian access—all of which have been systematically dismantled in Gaza.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk stated that the famine is the direct result of Israeli government actions, including the unlawful blockade of humanitarian aid, destruction of civilian infrastructure, and mass displacement. He warned that using starvation as a weapon of war constitutes a grave breach of international law and may amount to a war crime.

The World Health Organization has confirmed that more than 206 people have died from malnutrition in Gaza in 2025 alone.

Child malnutrition has surged to unprecedented levels, with over 12,000 children identified as acutely malnourished in July—the highest monthly figure ever recorded in the territory. Medical teams report that children are arriving at clinics with visible signs of starvation, and many are dying before treatment can be administered.

UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher described the famine as both predictable and preventable. He blamed Israel’s systematic obstruction of aid and stated, “This is a famine within reach of food, in a fertile land.

It is a famine openly promoted by some Israeli leaders as a weapon of war.” His remarks reflect growing frustration among humanitarian officials who have been denied access to deliver life-saving supplies.

UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini warned that Gaza is experiencing a “manufactured famine,” and that repeated alerts from aid agencies have been ignored. He called for immediate political intervention to lift the siege and restore humanitarian corridors, stressing that the international community must act before the situation deteriorates further.

Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) and other frontline NGOs have documented harrowing scenes inside Gaza’s hospitals. Infants and adults alike are dying from starvation, with no access to therapeutic food, formula, or basic nutrition. A UK-based trauma specialist working in Gaza City reported, “I have never seen so many patients so malnourished. We are watching people waste away in real time.”

These testimonies and field reports stand in stark contrast to Israel’s official narrative. The evidence presented by global health and human rights bodies paints a clear and urgent picture: famine in Gaza is real, it is escalating, and it is the result of deliberate policies that deny Palestinians the means to survive.

Since the beginning of the genocide in Gaza, since October 2023, at least 62,263 Palestinians have been killed and 157,365 wounded, the majority of whom are children and women.