Diseases spread to displaced populations from Gaza landfills
Rotting waste has piled up over the course of Israel’s war on Gaza — a problem that has worsened with the blocking of the territory’s landfills. Furthermore, these piles swarm with contagious diseases that have spread to the displaced population, The New Arab and agencies reported on June 24th.
The landfill belonging to the Nuseirat camp — where over 300,000 people from various parts of the Gaza Strip shelter — has grown hazardous with the onset of rising summer temperatures. 10-year-old Mohammed Harb rummages through these piles for materials to help his mother prepare food.
“We are getting [respiratory] and skin diseases which are spreading because of the piles of garbage near hundreds of displaced people’s tents, as well as the foul smell coming from them,” said Harb. “Especially now [that] summer is starting.”
The landfills provide a breeding ground for insects like mosquitoes and flies, contributing to the spread of infections. Stray dogs also roam the area.
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“There are no words to describe the suffering we are going through,” said Aya Hajjaj, who described the living conditions as “catastrophic.”
“We can’t sleep because of the disgusting stench coming from the piled-up garbage, and the mosquitoes and flies,” said 50-year-old Um Muhammed. He described life near the garbage dump as a living death. She added that her young children have contracted chickenpox with no response from authorities.
Mohammed Abu Ful also said his wife has scabies, presumably contracted from living in close contact with the garbage heap.
The Palestinian Red Crescent’s Gaza spokesperson Nebal Farsakh confirmed over a million recorded cases of infectious diseases in the territory — particularly hepatitis and cholera due to contaminated water.
Waseem Al-Louh, an employee in Nuseirat council blamed the accumulating waste and its subsequent hazards on Israel’s occupation: “[Israel] has taken control of the main landfill sites in eastern Gaza,” he said. “We can’t risk going there as Israeli tanks are stationed there preventing access.”
The New Arab and agencies
