The Deputy Minister of Health, Dr Yusuf Abu al-Rish, said: “Our people have the right to access adequate health services following international regulations.
Abu al-Rish called on the international community to support the Palestinian people and stop the Israeli occupation from practicing repression against health institutions and patients in the Palestinian territories, especially in the Gaza Strip.
Dr Abu al-Rish in his speech during the conference held by the World Health Organization (WHO) on “the Barriers and Health attacks on health care in Occupied Palestinian Territory”, Abu Rish stressed the need to spare the health sector from the ongoing consequences of the political division, and work to find a supportive umbrella for the health sector so that the patient can get his services in these difficult conditions.
The Deputy Minister of Health praised the efforts exerted by the WHO in the Palestinian territories by issuing a report that he described as “very distinctive” that monitors the violations committed by the Israeli occupation against the health system in Palestine and the Gaza Strip in particular. The report documents that more than a third of patient permit applications and more than 54% of escort permits were not approved in time for patients to reach their hospital appointments during the period from 2019 to 2021.
One in ten of the patients transferred outside the Gaza Strip loses his life six months after the date of their first appointment at the hospital.
The two reports also stated that the occupation approved the travel of 30% of patients without the consent of a parent to accompany them in general.
He added: The continuous recurrence of cancer deaths in the Gaza Strip comes due to their inability to access treatment in hospitals in the West Bank and the Occupied Palestinian territories, the unavailability of a large part of their medicines in the Gaza Strip, in addition to the continued Israeli occupation ban on the provision of radiation and chemotherapy services to patients in the Gaza Strip.
Dr Abu al-Rish referred to the ongoing shortage of medical consumables and medicines in the Gaza Strip, pointing out that his ministry issued a warning two days ago that hemodialysis services would be stopped within two weeks due to the lack of medical consumables.
For his part, the WHO representative in the Palestinian Territories stressed that his organization is committed to documenting and monitoring the obstacles suffered by the health sector in the Gaza Strip
The World Health Organization is also committed to supporting the health sector and supporting it in all forms.
It is worth mentioning that the Israeli occupation has imposed a strict blockade on the Gaza Strip since 2006, under which restrictions are imposed on the entry of fuel and goods, including medical equipment and devices, as well as restricting the movement of citizens to and from the Strip.