'IHL in Focus' Spot Report – Water Crisis in War and Under Occupation

16 June 2025

Our new IHL in Focus Spot Report Water Crisis in War and Under Occupation: Current Israeli Policy and Practice in Occupied Palestinian Territory under International Humanitarian Law, analyses Israeli policy and practice relating to water in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) through the lens of international humanitarian law (IHL). Using satellite imagery, municipal records, humanitarian reports, and military statements, the report examines the destruction of water and sanitation systems alongside restrictions on access – measures that breach key provisions of IHL and are fuelling an acute humanitarian crisis.  

A DELIBERATE WAR ON WATER

Since October 2023, Israeli military operations in Gaza have severely damaged water infrastructure and imposed energy blockades that have drastically reduced access to clean drinking water. Entire neighbourhoods have been levelled, pipelines destroyed, and civilians forced to rely on contaminated wells or unsafe sources. In the West Bank, discriminatory water allocation, permit restrictions, and settler violence have long denied Palestinians access to adequate water resources.

Key Findings

• Gaza Strip: Israeli actions, including water cut-offs, energy blockades, and targeting of desalination facilities, have caused drinking water availability to fall by 94% compared to the period before the current escalation, placing it far below emergency humanitarian thresholds.
• West Bank: A long-standing regime of discriminatory water allocation, permit restrictions, and settler violence systematically denies Palestinians access to essential water infrastructure.
• Legal Assessment: The report argues these patterns constitute violations of IHL and other branches of international law, potentially triggering state responsibility and individual criminal liability for war crimes, crimes against humanity, and, if proven, genocide.

‘The destruction of water infrastructure and the obstruction of humanitarian access are not isolated incidents,’ says Professor Paola Gaeta, Director of the Geneva Academy. ‘They reflect a sustained policy of coercion by an occupying power, with devastating effects on civilians, and especially on women and children.’

International Orders Ignored

Despite provisional measures ordered by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in the South Africa v Israel case, requiring Israel to ensure unhindered humanitarian aid and open the Rafah crossing, access to safe water in Gaza remains critically restricted. By May 2025, UN officials reported that ‘none of this aid has reached the Gaza population’.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has recognized the severity of these violations. Arrest warrants issued in November 2024 for Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Gallant include charges of starvation as a method of warfare, underlining that depriving civilians of water can constitute a prosecutable war crime.

A Call for Concrete Action

While the legal framework protecting access to water is clear and binding, enforcement depends on political will. This report calls on all states to take concrete action to uphold international law. It urges them to fulfil their obligation under Common Article 1 of the Geneva Conventions to ensure respect for IHL, prosecute grave breaches under universal jurisdiction and to adopt measures to include compliance. States should neither recognize nor assist the unlawful situation created by Israel’s conduct; in fact they should support accountability measures that provide justice and remedy to victims.

As reaffirmed in a recent joint statement by the United Kingdom, France, and Canada, Israel must facilitate unhindered humanitarian access in Gaza, including access to water. These commitments now need to be translated into concrete action through sustained diplomatic pressure and support for legal enforcement.

Read the full report here.

The report does not cover deprivation of water policies affecting detainees, including Palestinian prisoners held by Israeli authorities or Israeli hostages held by Hamas. The Geneva Academy and the report’s author unequivocally condemn the heinous 7 October 2023 attack by Hamas, the taking of hostages, and their detention in inhumane conditions.