PALESTINIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY CONDEMNS ISRAEL’S SWAMPING OF GAZA

Ramallah, 5 Jumadil Awwal 1436/24 February 2015 (MINA) – The Palestinian foreign ministry condemned on Monday Israel’s act of pumping large amounts of rainwater into the Gaza Strip, which flooded dozens of homes and caused injuries among Palestinians.

On February 21, the Israeli army opened the floodgates of a canal leading to central Gaza, which resulted in the removal of sand mounds along the border with Israel, said Gaza’s Civil Defense Directorate said in a statement, Wafa News Agency quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA) as reporting.

Civil Defense said about 50 homes sank in the floods, while a number of local residents in eastern Gaza areas were reported injured. There were also reports of deaths of livestock and poultry.

The ministry considered this Israeli action as ‘arbitrary’ and a continuation of Israel’s aggression against the people of Gaza, stressing that this action is a crime against humanity and in violation of all norms and standards.

It expressed surprise at the international community’s silence over this ‘crime’, demanding a prompt move to stop the Israeli siege imposed on the strip, to provide the people of Gaza with the necessary protection, and to prosecute the perpetrators at international courts.

Palestinians in Gaza are suffering from poor living conditions following Israel’s 2014 summer aggression on the strip. Thousands of families were displaced after their homes were bombarded, leaving them to depend on aid and to live in makeshift shelters that do not protect them from the cold winter weather.(T/P008/P3)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)