Shtayyeh Slams Israeli Discrimination in Distribution of Water to Palestinians

Palestinian and Israeli activists protest in the West Bank against the seizure of land and water supply cuts in Palestinian villages in October 2021.
Palestinian and Israeli activists protest in the West Bank against the seizure of land and water supply cuts in Palestinian villages in October 2021.
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Shtayyeh Slams Israeli Discrimination in Distribution of Water to Palestinians

Palestinian and Israeli activists protest in the West Bank against the seizure of land and water supply cuts in Palestinian villages in October 2021.
Palestinian and Israeli activists protest in the West Bank against the seizure of land and water supply cuts in Palestinian villages in October 2021.

Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh said on Monday that the “apartheid regime” in Israel has created a broken Palestinian legal, administrative and economic system that requires international intervention.

Speaking at the start of a weekly cabinet meeting held in Ramallah, Shtayyeh said the world should take a clear stand and the necessary steps to stop Israel’s crimes of apartheid against the Palestinian people.

The PM accused Israel of enacting several laws that serve its “racist regime”, whether it is the nation-state law or otherwise.

“This Israeli government espouses the doctrine of killing, burning, erasure and genocide,” Shtayyeh affirmed.

He highlighted the discrimination, giving the example of the distribution of water between Palestinians and Israelis. He revealed that a Palestinian receives 72 liters per day compared to 430 to one Israeli.

He also cited the denial of construction on Palestinian land, the segregation barrier, the siege on Gaza, policies in occupied East Jerusalem, and ban on family unification for Palestinians.

Shtayyeh’s comments came shortly after Israel's National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir declared: “The right of me, my wife and kids to travel around the West Bank is more important than that of the Arabs.”

Meanwhile, a recent report published by Israel’s Haaretz showed that Palestinians barely get enough water to bathe their children and wash their clothes, while in sharp contrast, neighboring Jewish settlements look like an oasis.

“Wildflowers burst through the soil. Farmed fish swim in neat rows of ponds. Children splash in community pools,” the newspaper wrote.

Across the West Bank, it said water troubles have stalked Palestinian towns and cities since interim peace accords of the 1990s gave Israel control over 80 percent of the West Bank’s water reserves — and most other aspects of Palestinian life.

Palestinians have protested in the West Bank over the water shortages that have, in some areas, stretched for around a month.

“This is the hardest summer we’ve had in nine years,” said Palestinian Water Minister Mazen Ghunaim.

The Minister accused Israel’s national water company of reducing water supplies to the Palestinian cities of Bethlehem and Hebron by 25 percent in the past nine weeks.

Ghunaim claimed the recent water cuts were a “political problem” under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ultranationalist government, which has taken a particularly hard line against the Palestinians. “If we were settlers, they would solve this problem instantly,” he said.

The 500,000 Jewish settlers who live in the West Bank are connected to the Israeli water grid through a sophisticated network that provides water continuously, compared to more than three million Palestinians who have only sporadic access to municipal water.



White House: Qatar and Egypt Plan Talks with Hamas on Gaza Ceasefire

National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan speaks during a press briefing at the White House in Washington, US, May 22, 2024. REUTERS/Leah Millis/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan speaks during a press briefing at the White House in Washington, US, May 22, 2024. REUTERS/Leah Millis/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
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White House: Qatar and Egypt Plan Talks with Hamas on Gaza Ceasefire

National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan speaks during a press briefing at the White House in Washington, US, May 22, 2024. REUTERS/Leah Millis/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan speaks during a press briefing at the White House in Washington, US, May 22, 2024. REUTERS/Leah Millis/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Saturday that mediators for Qatar and Egypt plan to engage Hamas militants soon to see if there is a way to push ahead with a Gaza ceasefire proposal offered by US President Joe Biden.

Sullivan spoke to reporters on the sidelines of a Ukraine peace summit and was asked about diplomatic efforts to get an agreement for Hamas to release some hostages held since Oct. 7 in exchange for a ceasefire lasting at least six weeks.

Sullivan said he had spoken briefly to one of the main interlocutors, Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, and that they would speak again about Gaza on Sunday while both are in Switzerland for the Ukraine conference, Reuters reported.

Hamas has welcomed the ceasefire proposal, but insists any agreement must secure an end to the war, a demand Israel still rejects. Israel described Hamas's response to the new US peace proposal as total rejection.

Sullivan said that US officials have taken a close look at Hamas's response.

"We think some of the edits are not unexpected and can be managed. Some of them are inconsistent both with what President Biden laid out and what the UN Security Council endorsed. And we are having to deal with that reality," he said.

He said US officials believe there remains an avenue to an agreement and that the next step will be for Qatari and Egyptian mediators to talk to Hamas and "go through what can be worked with and what really can’t be worked with."

"We anticipate a back-and-forth between the mediators and Hamas. We’ll see where we stand at that point. We will keep consulting with the Israelis and then hopefully at some point next week we’ll be able to report to you where we think things stand and what we see as being the next step to try to bring this to closure," he said.