There have been heavy rains and the sewage system is not working because Hamas does not want to pay for diesel fuel. Some families already have had to be evacuated on Wednesday due to sewage flooding their homes.
430 workers are using 250 donkey carts to collect garbage off the streets.
Hamas is refusing to pay the tax that Fatah is demanding in order to send them diesel fuel.
There is a real danger of disease and epidemics spreading in Gaza.
430 workers are using 250 donkey carts to collect garbage off the streets.
Hamas is refusing to pay the tax that Fatah is demanding in order to send them diesel fuel.
There is a real danger of disease and epidemics spreading in Gaza.
GAZA CITY, Dec 5 2013 (IPS) - The garbage trucks of Gaza city are at a standstill due to an ongoing fuel shortage affecting all aspects of daily life, including garbage collection, sewage and waste disposal and other vital services. But the local donkeys are here to help.
Abu Hesham on his donkey cart won’t be able to clear all the streets of garbage. In Gaza’s Barcelona neighbourhood, trash bins are overflowing – a common sight since fuel for motor vehicles became scarce – and as the 33-year-old donkey cart owner approaches the garbage dump, there is no space left and no option but to throw the trash out on the side of the road.
“What else can I do?” he tells IPS as he carries sacks of waste at 7:00 AM through Gaza’s misty weather.
The smell of rotting garbage is getting worse and worse. The people in Gaza attempt to burn the garbage to reduce the quantity and minimise the risk of infection, so the air is filled with black smoke too. Right now, breathing fresh air is not an option for most people in Gaza, whether children or adults.
More...
