Gaza Herald – Gaza’ Authorities on Wednesday began clearing an estimated 370,000 metric tons of garbage that had piled up in the Firas Market area of central Gaza City since the outbreak of the genocide, Palestinian officials said.
The site had become a major health and environmental hazard amid the collapse of basic municipal services.
Amjad al-Shawa, head of the Palestinian NGO Network, said the waste removal operation was being carried out with support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), in coordination with Gaza Municipality and civil society organizations.
Al-Shawa described the step as “critically important” to mitigating severe public health and environmental risks, though he did not specify where the waste would be relocated.
Before the genocide, garbage was typically transported to the main landfill in the Juhr al-Dik area, near the southern perimeter fence.
Gaza Municipality previously warned that more than 500,000 cubic meters of waste had accumulated across streets and temporary dump sites, while access to the primary landfill remained restricted.
Officials cautioned that the mounting trash created ideal conditions for the spread of infectious diseases and the proliferation of rodents and insects, posing heightened risks to children, the elderly, and immunocompromised residents.
Before the genocidal war, Gaza generated roughly 2,000 tons of waste per day, according to pre-war data from the Water and Environmental Quality Authority. Organic waste accounted for about 65 %, followed by plastics (16.1%), paper (8.1 %), and metals (3 %). The broader environmental system has suffered near-total collapse after widespread destruction of water networks, sewage infrastructure, and wastewater treatment plants, resulting in ongoing contamination and escalating public health concerns.
