But mostly she blames West Bank Jewish settlements, some of which have swimming pools. They were afraid that we would use up all their water. For other villages dependent on agriculture, the main problem is a shortage of water for crops. Part of the difference is due to living standards - Israelis have higher incomes that allow them to pay for as much water as their families need. But Palestinians feel they shouldn't have to pay for their water at all - and if they must, they say it wouldn't be as expensive and in such high demand if it were not for Jewish settlements built on land Israel gained in the 1967 war.
More problems await.
Many places in the West Bank have no treatment facilities for waste water - or even catch basins for storm water. During the winter rainy season, the backup well in the valley at the bottom of Der Sudan overflows. With no mechanism to preserve the water for the dry summer, a steady rush of water spills out onto the ground. In the teeming Gaza Strip, home to a million Palestinians, years of overworking the water table has caused seawater to seep in, raising salinity. Israel is not immune from water-shortage worries.