Israeli Soldiers Blow Up Main Drinking Water Reservoir in Rafah

On Monday, the Israeli newspaper "Haaretz" reported that the Israeli army has opened a military investigation into allegations of violations of international law by Israeli soldiers who detonated the main drinking water reservoir in Rafah, Gaza Strip. The newspaper noted that soldiers from the 401st Brigade of the Israeli army blew up the water reservoir with explosives, with the approval of their direct commanders, but without obtaining consent from the southern region commanders of the army. The water reservoir is located in the Tal al-Sultan neighborhood near areas that the army designated as safe for humanitarian purposes. Nevertheless, one soldier filmed the explosion of the water reservoir and stated that it was in honor of the Sabbath. The reservoir, which was funded in 2018 by the Japanese government and UNDP, has a capacity of three thousand cubic meters and was the source of drinking water for residents of the area who had displaced to the city of Rafah before the Israeli forces advanced into the city in the southern Gaza Strip.