Nablus mayor resigns over water shortage

Shaka’ah said in his letter of resignation that he and all the members of the municipal council decided to resign to avoid “chaos” in the city because of the crisis.

Water dripping from a tap (photo credit: ING IMAGE/ASAP)
Water dripping from a tap
(photo credit: ING IMAGE/ASAP)
Ghassan Shaka’ah, the mayor of Nablus, the largest Palestinian city in the West Bank, on Tuesday submitted his following protests over a severe water shortage.
Shaka’ah said in his letter of resignation that he and all the members of the municipal council decided to resign to avoid “chaos” in the city because of the crisis.
The resignation came following demonstrations in Nablus in protest against the water shortage over the past few days.
Earlier this week, dozens of angry residents closed a main street in the city in protest against the water shortage.
The demonstrators accused the municipality of “unequal distribution” of water to the city’s neighborhoods.
They claimed that Palestinians living in the Balata and Askar refugee camps east of Nablus were being deliberately cut off from water supplies.
The residents of the camps were being forced to buy their water from private suppliers at very high prices, they said.
Many residents of Nablus are also furious with the municipality for its decision to install prepaid meters in their homes to prevent water theft.