Khaled Osaily. خالد العسيلي رئيس بلدية الخيل السابق خالد العسيلي
Hebron Mayor KhaledOsaily met on 9 June with Ms. Jill Shaunfield, Science and Technology Policy Advisor at the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, U.S. Department of State. The meeting, which discussed means to improve the water situation in Hebron as well as the future wastewater treatment facility in Hebron Governorate, was attended by Mr. Walter Miller, Economic Officer at the US Consulate in Jerusalem and Mr. Tim Yozzleman from the Consulate’s Economic Section.
At the beginning of the meeting held at Hebron Municipality, Hebron Mayor thanked the US Government and people for their support of numerous projects in the city through USAID. He underlined the effective cooperation between Hebron Municipality and USAID which has led to many achievements and success stories for the public good and which has improved the life of Palestinians.
In reply to a question by the visiting delegation on the water situation in the city, Osaily explained that Hebron has suffered over the past years from acute water shortages which were given utmost attention by the PNA. PM Fayyad and the Head of the Palestinian Water Authority (PWA) have both personally followed up on this matter and the PWA has promised to improve this situation and to provide Hebron with adequate water quantities this Summer to help alleviate the water crisis. 83 liters of water per day and per capita shall be provided. “However, the problem remains and in the past few months the city only received 12.000m3/day, i.e. 45 liters per person per day, while world health bodies indicate that the minimum amount of water per person per day should be at least 150 liters. The water crisis will only grow in the coming days if the city’s water share is not increased following the rehabilitation of PWA wells and the operation of new wells, as Hebron Municipality is only the distributor of water allocated to it by the main provider, i.e. the PWA”, he said.
Osaily added that through the Remote Control System for the Hebron Water Network, the Municipality has ensured a fairer distribution and reduced losses, which has helped greatly improve the distribution of water allocated to Hebron by the PWA. He also spoke about settler aggressions on water pipes serving Palestinian households in areas near settlements and settler outposts in the city, the latest of which took place in Tal al Rumeideh, causing great suffering to Palestinians.
Speaking about the wastewater treatment plant project to be implemented next year, Osaily said that the project preparation phase is going on well and that project donors and sponsors (World Bank, French Development Agency, EU and USAID) are all keen on ensuring the success of this project which shall have huge benefits, improving environmental and economic conditions as well as alleviating financial burdens caused by the fact that Israel deducts huge amounts from Palestinian tax money for wastewater that sometimes does not even originate in Palestinian communities.
Osaily called on his guests to exert pressure on Israel in order to increase Hebron Governorate’s share of water allocated by the Israeli company Mekorot. Israel, he explained, controls water aquifers in the West Bank as well as water quantities provided to Palestinians.
After a tour in various municipal sections, Ms. Shaunfield expressed her amazement at the achievements and developments in the municipality as well as at itsmodern administrative system. She promised to convey a true picture of conditions she witnessed in Hebron to her authorities.
