Epidemics and diseases. Nightmare haunts displaced people in Gaza

A report by Oxfam International has revealed that diseases caused by water pollution are widespread among the population of the Gaza Strip, and common problems include respiratory infections, polio, hepatitis, diarrhea and skin infections.

The United Nations has estimated that more than a million people have contracted severe respiratory infections in Gaza since the war began, more than half a million Palestinians have severe diarrhea, and about 100,000 people have jaundice.

The report also indicates that about 65,000 cases of rashes and more than one hundred and three thousand cases of scabies and lice were recorded.

All wastewater treatment plants and 70 percent of pumps have disappeared, the organization said.

As a result, the amount of water available in Gaza has dropped by 94 per cent since the war began, to less than 5 litres per day per person, according to estimates by Oxfam International.