Doctors Without Borders accused Israeli authorities on Tuesday of systematically depriving Palestinians in Gaza of water, calling it a campaign of “collective punishment.”

The medical charity, known by its French acronym MSF, published a report based on testimonies and data collected in 2024 and 2025. It said the destruction of water infrastructure and obstruction of access constitute “an integral part of Israel’s genocide.”

What is MSF accusing Israel of doing to water in Gaza?

MSF says Israel has deliberately destroyed and blocked access to water infrastructure in Gaza as part of a broader strategy against the Palestinian population. The charity’s report, titled “Water as a Weapon,” describes the situation as “engineered scarcity.” This is occurring alongside, in MSF’s words, the killing of civilians, the devastation of health facilities, and the destruction of homes.

How much of Gaza’s water infrastructure has been destroyed?

The MSF report cites data from the United Nations, European Union and World Bank indicating that Israel had destroyed or damaged nearly 90 percent of water and sanitation infrastructure in Gaza. Desalination plants, boreholes, pipelines and sewage systems have been rendered inoperable or inaccessible. MSF also documented several incidents where its clearly identified water trucks and boreholes were shot at or destroyed.

Palestinians have been injured and killed simply trying to access water, MSF emergency manager Claire San Filippo said. MSF says it is, besides local authorities, the largest producer and main distributor of drinking water in Gaza. Last month, it provided more than 5.3 million liters of water daily, meeting the minimum needs of more than 407,000 people, roughly a fifth of Gaza’s population.

How is Israel blocking MSF’s water operations in Gaza?

Israeli military displacement orders have locked MSF teams out of areas where they previously provided water to hundreds of thousands of people, the charity said. A third of its requests to bring in critical water and sanitation supplies have been rejected or left unanswered. Those supplies include desalination units, pumps, water tanks, chlorine, and other chemicals needed to treat water.

San Filippo warned that the deprivation of water, combined with overcrowding, dire living conditions, and a collapsed health system, creates “a perfect storm for the spread of diseases.” The report describes the overall situation as “the deliberate infliction of destructive and inhumane conditions of life on the Palestinian population in Gaza.”

Despite an October ceasefire that largely halted the Gaza war, which began after Hamas’s 2023 attack on Israel, daily violence continues. Israeli strikes persist and both the Israeli military and Hamas accuse each other of breaking the truce.

What is MSF demanding from Israel and its allies?

MSF called on Israel to immediately restore water access for people in Gaza at the required levels. It also urged Israel’s allies to use their leverage to pressure Israel to stop impeding humanitarian access. “Israeli authorities know that without water, life ends,” San Filippo said.