I've always been slightly sympathetic towards Israel. Maybe a little because they're meant to be God's "chosen people", but also because of their historical plight. First, they get persecuted for no apparent reason but one mad man's racial issues. Then, they are awarded land in the middle of a desert as "compensation", amidst their biblical enemies. And now they seem to be embroiled in eternal conflict with their neighbours.
It would be too simplistic to conclude that all of Israel's present day disputes are because of water, but water does feature significantly in Israel-Palestine talks. The numbers by a 2009 World Bank report put Israel in a less than flattering light: Israeli supposedly uses 4 times as much water per person, as Palestine. (Israel says they only use twice as much.) And the difference in lifestyles of the West Bank Israelis and Palestinians is quite stark -- in Israel, swimming pools, lawns, and agriculture feature strongly; on the Palestinian side, they are only allowed to dig shallow wells and get water from natural springs or rain. In summer, the Palestinians have to buy water from Israel.
What probably smarts most is that most of West Bank Israel's water comes from a shared aquifer that runs under both countries. However, due to a treaty signed in 1995, Israel has rights to more than 80% of that water. Israel provides 40MCM (approx 24mgd) of water to Palestine annually, which works out to about 77% of Palestine's annual water needs. Considering that Palestine has a population of 2.3million people, this is extremely little water -- it works out to a fifth of the per capita water consumption in Singapore! Palestine also argues that the treaty was only meant to be an interim agreement, but it has dragged on for more than a decade. Israel's defense is that Palestine's water problems are due to mismanagement and poor planning.
Knowing Singapore and Malaysia's own water disputes, I wouldn't dare cast strong accusations either way. I am sure both countries are justified in their arguments to some extent. And surely, fighting for your own survival is a basic human instinct. I leave with this picture of an Israeli and Palestinian arguing over the ownership of land and water, against the backdrop of a trickling water channel through barren land.
Source: National Geographic
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