Israel, the West Bank, and surrounding countries rely on the Jordan River and its tributaries for much of their water supply, and most of the underground aquifers used by Israel are underneath the West Bank.
Earlier interim agreements indicated that Israel could continue using some of these water resources as long as it continued to provide water to Palestinian areas that did not yet have the technology to access it themselves. Who controls these water sources and who can access them is something that will have to be decided.
Israel has been accused of denying Palestinians access to water resources in the West Bank and taking a disproportionate amount of water for its own citizens. An Amnesty International report found that the roughly 300,000 West Bank settlers use the same amount of water as the 2.3 million Palestinians there. Israel has responded that the problem is Palestinian infrastructure and that without Israel's help, Palestinians would have even less ability to access the water.
The Gaza Strip also faces acute water problems, such as contamination of freshwater sources with sewage and salt water.
The United Nations reports that 90 percent of the water it sampled from Gazan aquifers is undrinkable. Gazans have blamed the problem on Israel's Gaza blockade, which – supported by Egypt – prevents many of the materials necessary for repairs from entering the territory.
