Water en de oorlog in Gaza
We zien dat het Israëlische leger in Gaza water gebruikt als wapen tegen de Palestijnse bevolking, als onderdeel van de etnische zuivering die de Israëlische regering wil uitvoeren. Doelbewuste vernieling van waterinfrastructuur en het hinderen van de waterbevoorrading van de Palestijnen zijn in strijd met internationaal recht. En toch gaat het al meer dan 58 jaar lang zo door.
Water and war in Gaza
In Gaza, we see that water is now being used as weapon by the Israeli army, in its effort of ethnic cleansing. Intentionally damaging water infrastructure and denying Palestinians access to their water resources violate international humanitarian law, but it is common practice in Palestine for more than 58 years.
The Wazzani-incident in the summer of 2002 - a phoney war?
In 2001, Lebanon attempted to construct a pipe on the Wazzani river, in the south of the country and close to the border with the Israeli-occupied Golan. Together with the Hasbani River, the Wazzani contributes 150 million mł of water to the Upper Jordan River, which is a main source of fresh water for Israel. Therefore, Israel was greatly concerned about these Lebanese activities, fearing the future supply of water to its national water system. From 1982 to 2000, this southern part of Lebanon was under Israeli occupation. During a period of 18 years, Israel was in full control of the area, securing its access to one of the main sources of the Jordan River. The Israeli government was repeatedly accused of diverting water from the Litani River basin into the rivers flowing to Israel, through tunnels and pipe lines that cross the water dived between the two systems. After the Israeli withdrawal in the summer of 2000, no evidence was found that could support these accusations. When the Lebanese authorities returned to the area, new plans were laid out to enhance the standard of living in the villages along the Israeli-Lebanese border by supplying them with water.
Water, ideology and security persceptions in Israel
The natural environment of Israel sets its limits on water use for economic development, domestic needs and preservation of nature. Since most of water used in Israel originates from transboundary resources, water policies are not merely limited to management of water resources but interfere with and become part of international politics. Despite multilateral and bilateral peace initiatives, relations between Israel and its neighbours are still based on suspicion and animosity. So are issues related to water resources, which have become one of the core differences between Israel and Syria, Lebanon and Palestine. In Israel, a western-oriented country with a similar package of needs and water uses, water therefore is considered a highly strategic asset. Altering its access to its present water resources, no matter the quantity involved, will be considered a casus belli, as prime minister Ariel Sharon warned the Lebanese government on the Wazzani river issue in the autumn of 2002.
Article: Israeli water policy in a regional context of conflict
In 2004, I published an article on the long term Israeli water : "Israeli water policy in a regional context of conflict: prospects for sustainable development for Israelis and Palestinians?"
The article is based on field research and policy analysis, especially the "Long term tasks of the Israeli water sector" document in which a vision was laid out for the development of the sector towards 2020. I am currently working on an update of this article.
Olie op het vuur: water in het Midden-Oosten
Interview in De Tijd, 14/07/2001.
Het Midden-Oosten is een ontvlambare regio. Daarvan moet niemand nog worden overtuigd. Dat de regio eveneens een rampzalige droogte tegemoet gaat, is minder bekend. Dat komt omdat water nu eenmaal weinig fotogeniek is, zegt Stefan Deconinck, wetenschappelijk medewerker aan het Centrum voor Duurzame Ontwikkeling van de Gentse Universiteit. Niettemin vormt water een van de hoofdthemas van het Israëlisch-Palestijns conflict. In deze periode van aanhoudende droogte en waterkrapte dreigen de Palestijnen immers opnieuw de dupe te worden. Zolang Israël hun geen gelijke toegang tot water kan waarborgen, is elk vredesakkoord gedoemd om te mislukken.
Een verborgen agenda voor Israël?
Interview in De Tijd, 14/07/2001
Door de aanhoudende droogte is de situatie in Israël problematisch geworden. Onder Israëlische hydrologen is een discussie losgebarsten over de mate waarin ze hun watervoorraad onder de heuvels (het bergaquifer) tijdelijk kunnen overexploiteren zonder dat er onherstelbare schade optreedt. Het idee is dat ze nu in de magere jaren met droogte lenen uit de watervoorraad die in de vette jaren met meer neerslag weer kan worden aangevuld, om het in bijbelse termen te verwoorden. Stefan Deconinck heeft zo zijn bedenkingen bij die oplossing.
