Not for consumption by Palestinians

TAKING ACTION TOGETHER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

This is a story of two villages – Susya and Sussia. They lie close together, but worlds apart. In the Palestinian village of Susya, a woman sits by a dried out water cistern; the land around her is parched and barren. In the nearby illegal Israeli settlement of Sussia, sprinklers irrigate vast green fields and children play in the pool. This is not a story of natural disaster, but of calculated discrimination. The deadly drought that grips the village of Susya has been deliberately created by an Israeli Government that is set on driving Palestinian civilians off the land they have lived on for centuries. "Water is life. Without water we cannot live; not us, not the animals, or the plants. Before we had some water, but after the army destroyed everything we have to bring water from far away. They make our life very difficult, to make us leave." Fatima al-Nawajah, a resident of Susya, speaking to Amnesty. Amnesty International researchers visited Palestinian communities throughout the Occupied Territories and found that chronic suffering caused by deliberate denial of water is now widespread. The hot, dry summer months are fast approaching – we must act now to avert a humanitarian disaster. And we desperately need your support. We have several high-profile campaigning activities planned. We'll also be stepping up our education and media campaigns to raise public awareness and counter the disinformation surrounding the issue of water in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Then on 22 March, World Water Day, we'll be mobilising hundreds of activists to take to the streets around the world. Any donation you can make now will help support all these activities together with our ongoing research and lobbying of the Israeli authorities. If you're under 18, we're not asking you to donate but please take action by emailing the Head of the Israeli Water Authority and letting him know what you think! Thank you. Kristyan Benedict Campaign Manager – Crisis Response & Country Priorities

Background to this campaign: Amnesty's report, Troubled Waters: Palestinians denied fair access to water, contains indisputable evidence of an extensive, coordinated and deliberate strategy to deny water to thousands of people. Today, 90% of tap water in Gaza is unfit for human consumption. Life-threatening water-borne diseases are common. Israel has taken sole control of the Mountain Aquifer, the West Bank's principal water supply, and is taking around 80% of it to supply either the illegal settlements or Israel itself. Read more and download full report.

{~J82105301617315134746201815~}