Jerusalem:
Israeli infrastructure minister Effi Eitam last week banned Palestinians from drilling for water in the West Bank and put a freeze on the issue of permits for future drillings.
The decision will have a severe effect on Palestinian agriculture, which relies mainly on water drilled from the ground, and will make it difficult for some villagers to access drinking water. Agriculture is already reeling from the amount of land confiscated or destroyed by Israel and a recent ban on Palestinians harvesting their olive crop.
Many villages, some 30% of which have never been connected to the water network, usually have to take drinking water from ground resources - either because they cannot afford to buy it from tankers, or because, due to Israel's policy of closure, water tankers cannot get into the villages.
It also adds insult to an already discriminatory injury. Israelis get between between five and seven times as much water as Palestinians, and they get priority access. When supplies in the semi-arid region are low, as during the summer months, the Israeli water company, Mekorot, closes the valves which supply Palestinian towns and villages so that Israeli supplies will not be affected.
Israeli infrastructure minister Effi Eitam last week banned Palestinians from drilling for water in the West Bank and put a freeze on the issue of permits for future drillings.
The decision will have a severe effect on Palestinian agriculture, which relies mainly on water drilled from the ground, and will make it difficult for some villagers to access drinking water. Agriculture is already reeling from the amount of land confiscated or destroyed by Israel and a recent ban on Palestinians harvesting their olive crop.
Many villages, some 30% of which have never been connected to the water network, usually have to take drinking water from ground resources - either because they cannot afford to buy it from tankers, or because, due to Israel's policy of closure, water tankers cannot get into the villages.
It also adds insult to an already discriminatory injury. Israelis get between between five and seven times as much water as Palestinians, and they get priority access. When supplies in the semi-arid region are low, as during the summer months, the Israeli water company, Mekorot, closes the valves which supply Palestinian towns and villages so that Israeli supplies will not be affected.