[News] What does the Israeli ban on cleaning supplies mean for Gaza?

[Anti-Imperialist News]

 What does the Israeli ban on cleaning supplies mean for Gaza?

Thursday 18-July-2024 -
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GAZA, (PIC)

After more than nine months of the Israeli genocidal war, Palestinians in
Gaza face numerous forms of suffering that extend beyond killing,
displacement, and starvation.

In their daily lives, which have been turned upside down, challenges and
problems accumulate, making it increasingly difficult to live in the tents
of displacement that have become the hallmark of the current Palestinian
catastrophe.

Since the start of the genocide war in Gaza 286 days ago, the Israeli
occupation forces have deprived Gaza residents of many basic necessities,
food, and various essential items for their daily lives.


*Ban on cleaning supplies*The crisis of unavailable cleaning supplies is
one of many problems troubling Palestinians, who are accustomed to high
levels of personal and household cleanliness. This crisis has opened the
door to serious health repercussions.

For weeks, the Israeli occupation forces have prevented the entry of all
types of cleaning materials into Gaza, aiming to spread diseases among the
population who are already suffering from numerous epidemics and diseases
due to repeated displacement, overcrowding, and water shortages.

After hours of wandering through Deir al-Balah market, the largest market
in Gaza currently, as the city has become a refuge for hundreds of
thousands of residents and displaced people, citizen Suad Abu Atiyeh’s
attempts to find soap or shampoo were unsuccessful.

Abu Atiyeh told the Palestinian Information Center (PIC) correspondent that
she has been searching for days for shampoo or even soap for washing, but
to no avail. Nearly everything in the market has run out, worsening the
overall cleanliness situation, which has already deteriorated due to water
shortages and the accumulation of waste while living in tents.

She pointed out that the water shortage makes the need for cleaning
supplies even greater, especially given the necessity of communal living in
tents, shelters, and shared bathrooms.

She confirms that the lack of cleaning supplies and water has led to the
spread of many diseases and epidemics.

As a result of the occupation’s bombing of tens of thousands of homes,
coupled with Israeli displacement orders, hundreds of thousands of
Palestinians live in tattered tents set up in empty spaces in Deir al-Balah
and Mawasi Khan Yunis, in UNRWA schools, and in universities that have been
turned into shelters, with each classroom now housing several families.

Hundreds of displaced people are forced to use shared bathrooms amid a
near-total lack of cleanliness and health standards.

The PIC correspondent observed that the Deir al-Balah market is completely
devoid of all types of cleaning supplies.

According to traders, the occupation army has been preventing the entry of
cleaning supplies into Gaza for a long time, leading to their depletion
from the markets.


*Alternatives*Citizen Muath al-Halabi from Khan Yunis, who lives in a tent,
told the PIC correspondent that he has resorted to using alternatives, such
as washing cooking utensils with sand.

He added that he and his children bathe infrequently using only water,
without any shampoo or soap.

He wonders about the reasons, but there are no answers other than the
Israeli determination to exterminate Palestinians on all fronts.


*Diseases and risks*Citizen Maryam Sharab explained that the lack of
cleaning supplies is a real problem because they live in an unclean
environment. The tents are set up on sand, the temperature inside the tents
is high, causing sweating, and the surroundings are unclean due to the
inability to remove waste, coupled with water shortages.

Sharab told the PIC that this situation has led to the reappearance of
diseases that had been eradicated, pointing to the spread of scabies and
head lice, which, if previously present in some children, are now
widespread among everyone.

According to the Government Media Office, more than 1.7 million displaced
people in Gaza have suffered from infectious diseases due to displacement.

UN and health reports in Gaza confirm that hundreds of thousands of
Palestinians suffer from various skin diseases due to the lack of personal
hygiene, water shortages, and the absence of cleaning supplies.

UNRWA noted in a post on X that waste is accumulating across Gaza, with
mosquitoes, flies, and rats spreading diseases and epidemics. The lack of
proper sanitation worsens the situation.

Dermatology and cosmetic consultant Nazir Abu Rahma confirms that the
shortage of cleaning supplies has caused a major crisis, particularly
affecting women, with the spread of eczema and hand allergies due to the
unsafe use of locally manufactured cleaning agents with unknown
compositions.

Abu Rahma stated in press remarks that lice and nits have noticeably spread
recently due to water shortages and the difficulty of bathing in shelters,
as well as the spread of fungi due to intense heat and high humidity inside
the tents.

The ban on the entry of cleaning supplies to Gaza has also impacted the
already exhausted and destroyed health sector. Our correspondent observed
firsthand at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital and other hospitals that there are no
cleaning agents or disinfectants in the various wards, affecting the spread
of infections and diseases.


*Rationing usage*Many citizens have resorted to rationing the use of the
cleaning supplies they have to extend their duration, while others have
shredded soap bars and mixed them with water to create a liquid for use as
shampoo and cleaning fluid.

Local workers in the cleaning supplies industry point out that the lack of
raw materials prevents local manufacturing in sufficient quantities.

Gaza residents continue to search for cleaning alternatives, using sand,
leaves, and lemon if available, to face the difficult challenges they are
enduring.

Legal experts emphasize that Israel’s periodic ban on the entry of cleaning
supplies, like many other goods, has no justification and is part of the
crime of genocide, aimed at destroying all aspects of Palestinian life and
depriving them of the necessary essentials for a dignified life.

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