Israel is considering reducing the water supply to northern Gaza while repairing pipelines to the south in preparation for forcing Palestinians out of Gaza City as part of a broader plan to occupy the enclave, the country’s public broadcaster said.
KAN reported that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government is weighing cuts to water sent north while working to fix two direct pipelines into southern Gaza.
The move comes as Israel faces accusations of weaponising thirst in its genocide on Gaza, alongside forced starvation and restrictions on humanitarian aid.
Since January, Israel has cut off water from the Israeli national water company Mekorot, one of the last remaining sources supplying the enclave, according to the Gaza Government Media Office.
On March 9, the Israeli military also severed the last power line feeding the central desalination plant south of Deir al Balah, halting large-scale drinking water production and worsening the crisis.
On Wednesday, Defence Minister Israel Katz approved a military plan dubbed Operation Gideon’s Chariots 2 to seize Gaza City despite ongoing mediation efforts and Hamas’s acceptance of a ceasefire proposal.
Israel’s War Cabinet earlier this month endorsed Netanyahu’s phased plan to reoccupy the entire Gaza.
The first stage calls for the takeover of Gaza City by displacing its roughly 1 million residents southward, surrounding the city, and carrying out raids into residential areas.
The second stage includes occupying refugee camps in central Gaza, many of which have already faced widespread destruction.
According to the plan, more than 800,000 Palestinians would be transferred to so-called "humanitarian zones" in the south, with shelters, field hospitals, and water infrastructure to be established.
Preparations are expected to be completed within three weeks.
