GAZA CITY, Palestine/ISTANBUL 

An Emirati-funded pipeline carrying desalinated water from Egypt into southern Gaza was inaugurated Thursday in Khan Younis city, offering rare relief to residents struggling with a near-total collapse of water networks under Israeli bombardment.

The new line runs 6.7 kilometers from the Egyptian border along Gaza’s coastal road to Khan Younis. It will supply safe drinking water to displaced families in the overcrowded Mawasi district and to parts of Rafah.

Omar Shatat, deputy head of the Coastal Municipalities Water Utility, called the project the largest of its kind since the start of the Israeli war.

He said the pipeline will allow an Emirati desalination plant in Egyptian Rafah, opened in February, to increase output to 10,000 cubic meters a day.

“This provides a vital source of clean water for hundreds of thousands of people facing severe shortages,” he added.

More than 80% of Gaza’s water infrastructure has been destroyed since October 2023, when Israel began its military campaign. The enclave had previously relied on supplies from Israel’s Mekorot company for most of its needs, with the rest drawn from local wells.

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) says the new project is designed to ensure at least 15 liters of potable water per person each day for around 600,000 Palestinians. Local officials say the line will operate independently from Israeli-controlled networks.

Israel has killed nearly 63,000 Palestinians in Gaza since October 2023. The military campaign has devastated the enclave, which is facing famine.

Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.