GAZA, (Palestine Foundation Information Center), The Gaza Municipality warned on Friday that the city’s waste collection and disposal sector has entered a critical stage, with a near-total shutdown expected in the coming hours due to a complete depletion of fuel needed to operate its vehicles. The municipality cautioned of an impending health and environmental disaster that could hit the city.
In its statement, the municipality said that the current crisis is severely hindering the continuation of solid waste removal services amid an acute fuel shortage affecting trucks and field equipment. It confirmed that some vehicles will stop operating as of Saturday, directly disrupting garbage collection in several neighborhoods.
The statement added that Gaza is facing a dangerous accumulation of waste, with more than 350,000 cubic meters piling up in streets and temporary dumping sites, while crews are being denied access to the main landfill in the Juhr al-Dik area east of Gaza.
The municipality warned that these conditions create an ideal environment for the spread of infectious diseases and the proliferation of rodents, mosquitoes, and other pests, posing a direct threat to the health of residents, especially children, the elderly, and those with weakened immune systems.
It further cautioned that continued denial of access to the landfill and fuel supplies would lead to a complete collapse of the sanitation sector, worsening the deteriorating humanitarian situation and escalating daily health risks.
The Gaza Municipality concluded by calling on the international community and humanitarian organizations to intervene immediately and urgently to supply fuel and allow access to the main landfill to prevent a worsening crisis that could spiral into an uncontrollable environmental and health disaster.
