The municipality of Khan Younis City, in southern Gaza, has accused the Israeli occupation authority of intentionally releasing collected rainwater from dams in the east and swamping many areas of the city, especially Salahuddin Street.
Days of Palestine reports that Mohamed al-Asttal, head of the municipality’s emergency committee, said on Wednesday that enormous amounts of water gushed out from dams in the east of Khan Younis, flooding agricultural areas near the border and penetrating Salahuddin Street and other roads.
Asttal added the massive quantities exceeded the capacity of the drainage system in the street and swamped large parts of the road, prompting municipal emergency teams to move immediately to address the situation and prevent the closure of the street, which he described as a vital route for people coming from northern Gaza to the south and vice versa.
Recently, large swathes of cultivated land and farmlands were also flooded on different occasions when Israeli authorities released collected rainwater into Gaza, causing hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of damage to agricultural areas in Gaza.
With no prior notice or regard for the local residents and their property, Israel deliberately opens the floodgates of its dams and canals in the direction of the Gaza Strip, in order to discharge water that accumulates due to heavy rains in the region.
