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Is Israel responsible for this, I think that's the big question?
Either way, it makes Israel look bad.
'54 Palestinians die' as Israel refuses medical permits
Israel was responsible for at least 54 Palestinian deaths last year as it rejected hundreds of medical permit requests it received from Gaza residents seeking treatment outside the besieged strip, rights groups have said.
In a joint statement on Tuesday, the Gaza-based Al Mezan Center for Human Rights, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP), and Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI), highlighted the immediate need for Israel to end its decade-long siege of the Gaza Strip.
In 2017, Israeli authorities approved fewer than half the medical permit requests it received, which were tied to appointments and treatment sessions in hospitals across the occupied territories and Israel - the lowest level since 2008.
More than 25,000 permit requests were submitted to Israeli authorities. Of those, 719 were refused, often under the pretext of security.
Another 11,281 applications are still pending approval - meaning thousands of people are in a state of jeopardy.
Samir Zaqout, Al Mezan director, told Al Jazeera that there is no "real rational reason" why patients in need of urgent medical assistance are denied hospital access.
WATCH: Gazans call for strike over collapsing economy (2:00)
"Israel is under a legal obligation to facilitate the freedom of movement of the Palestinian people," he said. "It decided when it blockaded the strip not only to deny Gazans of the right to free movement, but it also punished the ill who have a right to access healthcare."
In 2007, following the election victory of Hamas and the group's assumption of control over the territory, Israel imposed a strict land, aerial and naval blockade on Gaza.
In 2013, neighbouring Egypt, which has largely closed its border crossing with Gaza, blocked tunnels connecting Gaza with Egypt's el-Arish, shutting off the only other route out of the strip.
The main alternative is a path via the Erez crossing, which transfers people to Israel and the rest of the occupied territories.
'25,000 Gazans' on life's edge
Over the years, Israel has placed obstacles in the way of those seeking medical permits, which facilitate the movement of the ill.
For instance, child patients must have a guardian who is over 50 years old in order to travel.
Children with cancer without a guardian of the correct age, therefore, have not been able to access life-saving hospital appointments, Zaqout said.
Although Israel approves between 10 and 15 percent of permit requests, the bulk of the applications remains "under review" for months at a time, forcing many to reschedule appointments several times.
"The Israelis stall with the application requests and sometimes, not issuing a refusal at all makes it impossible for the patient to follow up with a lawyer or a rights organisation," Zaquot said.
Only patients who are in need of urgent care are eligible to apply for medical permits, meaning "more than 25,000 Gazans are between life and death".
'Who else do we turn to?'
Hani, father of seven-year-old cancer patient Ruba, said his daughter was recently denied a medical permit for the first time in seven years.
"She's not the only one," said Hani, who chose to conceal his last name for fear of reprisal.
"I had a daughter who died when she was just seven months old," he told Al Jazeera. "She suffered from the same cancer, and we lost her six years ago.
"I don't want to lose another daughter."
Ruba was diagnosed with cancer when she was a toddler.
She underwent a bone marrow transplant in January last year in a procedure that cost the family its savings.
Ruba received the tissue donation from her brother.
"I made sure it was my healthiest son, I wanted her to have the best chance of surviving," Hani said.
But without necessary treatment, he fears for his daughter's life.
"She's such a good girl, she's so pretty and smart," he said. "We're good people and do everything right - we face no problems with the authorities and our paperwork is always in order.
Hani said the family had received permits before on some 300 occasions and was not given a reason for the latest refusal.
"I don't even understand why, there were no reasons given to me this time, and I utilised every contact I had … nothing is more important to me than my children's wellbeing.
"Who else do we turn to?"
Israel has over the past decade launched three major assaults on Gaza, worsening a stark humanitarian situation.
With a major fuel and power crisis, the UN last week warned Gaza's emergency fuel supplies would soon run dry unless it received immediate donor support.
Fuel for generators to operate hospital supplies is largely absent.
Since 2008, Gaza's population has doubled while medical facilities remained poor.
With severe restrictions on access to basic services, Gaza has been dubbed the world's largest open-air prison.
I bet you fanboyed all over Kim John Un's sister...who is part of a regime that let 3 million people die of starvation a few years ago.
When was the famine in NK and what caused it?
This is on the US.
Complete and utter crapola.
North Korea's totalitarianism kills its people. They starve while the regime builds nukes to blackmail the rest of the world.
Who says, the US , the US always put military first (in fact so much is going to go into the military that social programs will be cut, just like with Bush Jr). That is their country, we starve other countries which we are doing to them now as I write.
Even though British declared Balfour for a Jewish state, the damn Jews kept bombing the British, most notable being the King David Hotel Bombing.
It shows just how disgraceful Jews have acted.
But the Sbarro bombing doesn't show how disgraceful the Arabs have acted, because the Arabs have every "right" to be murderously hostile?
I'm kind of neutral to the idea of Muslims liquidating the Jewish state, on one hand it's wrong to kick Jews living there off their land now, but at the other hand Israel's an oppressive rogue state.
Indeed, I don't support terrorism, but the King David Hotel bombing is worse because the British had supported the Jewish state of Israel, and there goes Jewish pre-Israelis bombing British targets.
I'm kind of neutral to the idea of Muslims liquidating the Jewish state, on one hand it's wrong to kick Jews living there off their land now, but at the other hand Israel's an oppressive rogue state.
The solution is the end of hostilities and peace between Israel and Gaza. There would be no "oppression" if there was an end to the hostilities. But useful idiots like you and those writing reports about people dying for lack of medical care need to place the responsibility on those creating the hostility. And its not Israel.
Indeed, I don't support terrorism, but the King David Hotel bombing is worse because the British had supported the Jewish state of Israel, and there goes Jewish pre-Israelis bombing British targets.
So, its "worse" to target a military objective because they are supposed to be your "friends" than it is to blow up children eating pizza?
More nonsense, they are NOT free to leave through Israel and they are NOT free to import arms or contraband, beyond that they can come and go as they please through Egypt.
Can you at least try and be truthful or is your hate solely based on these kinda pallywood lies
So, then Israel is an oppressive colonial force, bottom-line everybody in this World has a right to criticize Israel.
Horse Pucky ;-) Israel is a sovereign state with every right to refuse entry of any foreign national for whatever reason they chose. Just like any other state. ;-)
Israel's a country created by a bunch of Jewish immigrants, who decided to steal Palestinian lands.
Hog wash, the Israeli's are the native people who can show residence going back to the dawn of civilization. The Arabs weren't even a recognizable entity until some time in the 5th century VE. Roughly 10 thousand years later.
Canaan were the first in Israel, not Jews.
Muslims held control over Palestine clearly much longer than Jews ever did, as did Romans, early Persians, Assyrians, and Greeks.
Do you think any of those groups have a right to displace Jews, and Palestinians?
Oh, lets have Italians colonize Israel / Palestine because they held territory there for a period of time.
Those who are on the land have rights, and kicking them to the curb is simply unacceptable.
So, then Israel is an oppressive colonial force, bottom-line everybody in this World has a right to criticize Israel.
Horse Pucky ;-) Israel is a sovereign state with every right to refuse entry of any foreign national for whatever reason they chose. Just like any other state. ;-)
Israel's a country created by a bunch of Jewish immigrants, who decided to steal Palestinian lands.
Hog wash, the Israeli's are the native people who can show residence going back to the dawn of civilization. The Arabs weren't even a recognizable entity until some time in the 5th century VE. Roughly 10 thousand years later.
Canaan were the first in Israel, not Jews.
Muslims held control over Palestine clearly much longer than Jews ever did, as did Romans, early Persians, Assyrians, and Greeks.
Do you think any of those groups have a right to displace Jews, and Palestinians?
Oh, lets have Italians colonize Israel / Palestine because they held territory there for a period of time.
Those who are on the land have rights, and kicking them to the curb is simply unacceptable.
LOL you are completely deluded
The term Canaanite is a catch all for people of indeterminate origins yet living in the general area of Lebanon Syria and parts of Jordan during the late bronze age.
"Scholars doubt that the Canaanites were ever politically united into a single kingdom. In fact, archaeological excavations indicate that the "Canaanites" were actually made up of different ethnic groups. During the Late Bronze Age (1550-1200 B.C.), "Canaan was not made up of a single 'ethnic' group but consisted of a population whose diversity may be hinted at by the great variety of burial customs and cultic structures" wrote Ann Killebrew, an archaeology professor at Penn State University, in her book "Biblical Peoples and Ethnicity" (Society of Biblical Literature, 2005). "
the Judaic people developed from the Hyksos a people sometimes also confused with Canaanites however they were a markedly distinct and primitive group residing in the mountainous areas away from later more modern civilization and eventually became the Judaic tribes we know today.
See Silberman & Finkelstein
Just out of curiosity, do you have a high school diploma ??????
I'm kind of neutral to the idea of Muslims liquidating the Jewish state, on one hand it's wrong to kick Jews living there off their land now, but at the other hand Israel's an oppressive rogue state.
The solution is the end of hostilities and peace between Israel and Gaza. There would be no "oppression" if there was an end to the hostilities. But useful idiots like you and those writing reports about people dying for lack of medical care need to place the responsibility on those creating the hostility. And its not Israel.
Oh okay, Israel's not hostile,
Israel which killed 1,000's of Palestinian civilians, but lost just 6 Israeli civilians in the 2014 conflict.
Israel which has a walled off buffer zone at the Gaza border with armed guards who shoot at Gazans approaching the buffer zone.
Israel which bulldozes Palestinian homes, to make way for Israeli settlements.
Israel which is built on the former homes of Palestinians, as Jewish immigrants.
Israel which keeps Palestinian children prisoners in cages.
I'm kind of neutral to the idea of Muslims liquidating the Jewish state, on one hand it's wrong to kick Jews living there off their land now, but at the other hand Israel's an oppressive rogue state.
The solution is the end of hostilities and peace between Israel and Gaza. There would be no "oppression" if there was an end to the hostilities. But useful idiots like you and those writing reports about people dying for lack of medical care need to place the responsibility on those creating the hostility. And its not Israel.
Oh okay, Israel's not hostile,
Israel which killed 1,000's of Palestinian civilians, but lost just 6 Israeli civilians in the 2014 conflict.
Israel which has a walled off buffer zone at the Gaza border with armed guards who shoot at Gazans approaching the buffer zone.
Israel which bulldozes Palestinian homes, to make way for Israeli settlements.
Israel which is built on the former homes of Palestinians, as Jewish immigrants.
Israel which keeps Palestinian children prisoners in cages.
Response to hostilities. No hostilities -- no response.
Gaza wars -- response to hostilities (and the actual civilian deaths are lower than most accounts, imo).
Buffer zone -- response to hostilities (and they have a long, careful protocol to avoid using lethal force).
Home demolition -- response to hostilities (building illegally).
(the last two are patently not true, so won't give them the dignity of a response).
No hostilities -- no response.
They both are bad, but the Israelis are an enemy of Palestinians, obviously Israel bombing British targets was akin biting the British hand that fed them Israel.
Is Israel responsible for this, I think that's the big question?
Either way, it makes Israel look bad.
'54 Palestinians die' as Israel refuses medical permits
Israel was responsible for at least 54 Palestinian deaths last year as it rejected hundreds of medical permit requests it received from Gaza residents seeking treatment outside the besieged strip, rights groups have said.
In a joint statement on Tuesday, the Gaza-based Al Mezan Center for Human Rights, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP), and Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI), highlighted the immediate need for Israel to end its decade-long siege of the Gaza Strip.
In 2017, Israeli authorities approved fewer than half the medical permit requests it received, which were tied to appointments and treatment sessions in hospitals across the occupied territories and Israel - the lowest level since 2008.
More than 25,000 permit requests were submitted to Israeli authorities. Of those, 719 were refused, often under the pretext of security.
Another 11,281 applications are still pending approval - meaning thousands of people are in a state of jeopardy.
Samir Zaqout, Al Mezan director, told Al Jazeera that there is no "real rational reason" why patients in need of urgent medical assistance are denied hospital access.
WATCH: Gazans call for strike over collapsing economy (2:00)
"Israel is under a legal obligation to facilitate the freedom of movement of the Palestinian people," he said. "It decided when it blockaded the strip not only to deny Gazans of the right to free movement, but it also punished the ill who have a right to access healthcare."
In 2007, following the election victory of Hamas and the group's assumption of control over the territory, Israel imposed a strict land, aerial and naval blockade on Gaza.
In 2013, neighbouring Egypt, which has largely closed its border crossing with Gaza, blocked tunnels connecting Gaza with Egypt's el-Arish, shutting off the only other route out of the strip.
The main alternative is a path via the Erez crossing, which transfers people to Israel and the rest of the occupied territories.
'25,000 Gazans' on life's edge
Over the years, Israel has placed obstacles in the way of those seeking medical permits, which facilitate the movement of the ill.
For instance, child patients must have a guardian who is over 50 years old in order to travel.
Children with cancer without a guardian of the correct age, therefore, have not been able to access life-saving hospital appointments, Zaqout said.
Although Israel approves between 10 and 15 percent of permit requests, the bulk of the applications remains "under review" for months at a time, forcing many to reschedule appointments several times.
"The Israelis stall with the application requests and sometimes, not issuing a refusal at all makes it impossible for the patient to follow up with a lawyer or a rights organisation," Zaquot said.
Only patients who are in need of urgent care are eligible to apply for medical permits, meaning "more than 25,000 Gazans are between life and death".
'Who else do we turn to?'
Hani, father of seven-year-old cancer patient Ruba, said his daughter was recently denied a medical permit for the first time in seven years.
"She's not the only one," said Hani, who chose to conceal his last name for fear of reprisal.
"I had a daughter who died when she was just seven months old," he told Al Jazeera. "She suffered from the same cancer, and we lost her six years ago.
"I don't want to lose another daughter."
Ruba was diagnosed with cancer when she was a toddler.
She underwent a bone marrow transplant in January last year in a procedure that cost the family its savings.
Ruba received the tissue donation from her brother.
"I made sure it was my healthiest son, I wanted her to have the best chance of surviving," Hani said.
But without necessary treatment, he fears for his daughter's life.
"She's such a good girl, she's so pretty and smart," he said. "We're good people and do everything right - we face no problems with the authorities and our paperwork is always in order.
Hani said the family had received permits before on some 300 occasions and was not given a reason for the latest refusal.
"I don't even understand why, there were no reasons given to me this time, and I utilised every contact I had … nothing is more important to me than my children's wellbeing.
"Who else do we turn to?"
Israel has over the past decade launched three major assaults on Gaza, worsening a stark humanitarian situation.
With a major fuel and power crisis, the UN last week warned Gaza's emergency fuel supplies would soon run dry unless it received immediate donor support.
Fuel for generators to operate hospital supplies is largely absent.
Since 2008, Gaza's population has doubled while medical facilities remained poor.
With severe restrictions on access to basic services, Gaza has been dubbed the world's largest open-air prison.
I bet you fanboyed all over Kim John Un's sister...who is part of a regime that let 3 million people die of starvation a few years ago.
When was the famine in NK and what caused it?
This is on the US.
Complete and utter crapola.
North Korea's totalitarianism kills its people. They starve while the regime builds nukes to blackmail the rest of the world.
Who says, the US , the US always put military first (in fact so much is going to go into the military that social programs will be cut, just like with Bush Jr). That is their country, we starve other countries which we are doing to them now as I write.
^^^ Fish in a barrel ^^^
First, the U.S. is the most generous country in history in terms of providing foreign aide (too much so given how it is abused by local power brokers, imo).
US Humanitarian Aid Goes to North Korea Despite Nuclear Tensions
Defense spending has dropped while Social Spending is sending us into insolvency
View attachment 176461
And finally: how disgusting of you to blame the U.S. for the way despots treat their subjects.
Is Israel responsible for this, I think that's the big question?
Either way, it makes Israel look bad.
'54 Palestinians die' as Israel refuses medical permits
Israel was responsible for at least 54 Palestinian deaths last year as it rejected hundreds of medical permit requests it received from Gaza residents seeking treatment outside the besieged strip, rights groups have said.
In a joint statement on Tuesday, the Gaza-based Al Mezan Center for Human Rights, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP), and Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI), highlighted the immediate need for Israel to end its decade-long siege of the Gaza Strip.
In 2017, Israeli authorities approved fewer than half the medical permit requests it received, which were tied to appointments and treatment sessions in hospitals across the occupied territories and Israel - the lowest level since 2008.
More than 25,000 permit requests were submitted to Israeli authorities. Of those, 719 were refused, often under the pretext of security.
Another 11,281 applications are still pending approval - meaning thousands of people are in a state of jeopardy.
Samir Zaqout, Al Mezan director, told Al Jazeera that there is no "real rational reason" why patients in need of urgent medical assistance are denied hospital access.
WATCH: Gazans call for strike over collapsing economy (2:00)
"Israel is under a legal obligation to facilitate the freedom of movement of the Palestinian people," he said. "It decided when it blockaded the strip not only to deny Gazans of the right to free movement, but it also punished the ill who have a right to access healthcare."
In 2007, following the election victory of Hamas and the group's assumption of control over the territory, Israel imposed a strict land, aerial and naval blockade on Gaza.
In 2013, neighbouring Egypt, which has largely closed its border crossing with Gaza, blocked tunnels connecting Gaza with Egypt's el-Arish, shutting off the only other route out of the strip.
The main alternative is a path via the Erez crossing, which transfers people to Israel and the rest of the occupied territories.
'25,000 Gazans' on life's edge
Over the years, Israel has placed obstacles in the way of those seeking medical permits, which facilitate the movement of the ill.
For instance, child patients must have a guardian who is over 50 years old in order to travel.
Children with cancer without a guardian of the correct age, therefore, have not been able to access life-saving hospital appointments, Zaqout said.
Although Israel approves between 10 and 15 percent of permit requests, the bulk of the applications remains "under review" for months at a time, forcing many to reschedule appointments several times.
"The Israelis stall with the application requests and sometimes, not issuing a refusal at all makes it impossible for the patient to follow up with a lawyer or a rights organisation," Zaquot said.
Only patients who are in need of urgent care are eligible to apply for medical permits, meaning "more than 25,000 Gazans are between life and death".
'Who else do we turn to?'
Hani, father of seven-year-old cancer patient Ruba, said his daughter was recently denied a medical permit for the first time in seven years.
"She's not the only one," said Hani, who chose to conceal his last name for fear of reprisal.
"I had a daughter who died when she was just seven months old," he told Al Jazeera. "She suffered from the same cancer, and we lost her six years ago.
"I don't want to lose another daughter."
Ruba was diagnosed with cancer when she was a toddler.
She underwent a bone marrow transplant in January last year in a procedure that cost the family its savings.
Ruba received the tissue donation from her brother.
"I made sure it was my healthiest son, I wanted her to have the best chance of surviving," Hani said.
But without necessary treatment, he fears for his daughter's life.
"She's such a good girl, she's so pretty and smart," he said. "We're good people and do everything right - we face no problems with the authorities and our paperwork is always in order.
Hani said the family had received permits before on some 300 occasions and was not given a reason for the latest refusal.
"I don't even understand why, there were no reasons given to me this time, and I utilised every contact I had … nothing is more important to me than my children's wellbeing.
"Who else do we turn to?"
Israel has over the past decade launched three major assaults on Gaza, worsening a stark humanitarian situation.
With a major fuel and power crisis, the UN last week warned Gaza's emergency fuel supplies would soon run dry unless it received immediate donor support.
Fuel for generators to operate hospital supplies is largely absent.
Since 2008, Gaza's population has doubled while medical facilities remained poor.
With severe restrictions on access to basic services, Gaza has been dubbed the world's largest open-air prison.
I bet you fanboyed all over Kim John Un's sister...who is part of a regime that let 3 million people die of starvation a few years ago.
When was the famine in NK and what caused it?
This is on the US.
Complete and utter crapola.
North Korea's totalitarianism kills its people. They starve while the regime builds nukes to blackmail the rest of the world.
Who says, the US , the US always put military first (in fact so much is going to go into the military that social programs will be cut, just like with Bush Jr). That is their country, we starve other countries which we are doing to them now as I write.
^^^ Fish in a barrel ^^^
First, the U.S. is the most generous country in history in terms of providing foreign aide (too much so given how it is abused by local power brokers, imo).
US Humanitarian Aid Goes to North Korea Despite Nuclear Tensions
Defense spending has dropped while Social Spending is sending us into insolvency
View attachment 176461
And finally: how disgusting of you to blame the U.S. for the way despots treat their subjects.
Outgoing Secretary of State John Kerry awarded $1 million for North Korea to UNICEF, a U.N. agency, the day before President Donald Trump took office last week.
Indeed, I don't support terrorism, but the King David Hotel bombing is worse because the British had supported the Jewish state of Israel, and there goes Jewish pre-Israelis bombing British targets.
So, its "worse" to target a military objective because they are supposed to be your "friends" than it is to blow up children eating pizza?
They both are bad, but the Israelis are an enemy of Palestinians, obviously Israel bombing British targets was akin biting the British hand that fed them Israel.
They both are bad, but the Israelis are an enemy of Palestinians, obviously Israel bombing British targets was akin biting the British hand that fed them Israel.
The Israelis are the enemy of the Arab Palestinians?! Then why should one give high-level medical care to her enemies?!
(I disagree with you, btw, Israel is not the enemy of the Gazan people. Hamas is. A government which robs her citizens of resources (financial, humanitarian, practical, real resources) in order to harry a neighboring sovereign State with low-level, ineffective, pointless hostile actions is an enemy of her people).
Indeed, I don't support terrorism, but the King David Hotel bombing is worse because the British had supported the Jewish state of Israel, and there goes Jewish pre-Israelis bombing British targets.
So, its "worse" to target a military objective because they are supposed to be your "friends" than it is to blow up children eating pizza?
They both are bad, but the Israelis are an enemy of Palestinians, obviously Israel bombing British targets was akin biting the British hand that fed them Israel.
The British initially granted the Balfour Declaration to the Jews, but things never stay the same. They hindered Jewish immigration to Palestine during the Holocaust and instead sent fleeing Jews to Cyprus. Eventually the Jews had to fight the British for their independence in Israel, just like the Americans did in 1776, and the Hindus did in India.
They both are bad, but the Israelis are an enemy of Palestinians, obviously Israel bombing British targets was akin biting the British hand that fed them Israel.
The Israelis are the enemy of the Arab Palestinians?! Then why should one give high-level medical care to her enemies?!
(I disagree with you, btw, Israel is not the enemy of the Gazan people. Hamas is. A government which robs her citizens of resources (financial, humanitarian, practical, real resources) in order to harry a neighboring sovereign State with low-level, ineffective, pointless hostile actions is an enemy of her people).
The U.S.A allows nations it's fought like Iraqis, or Afghanis to travel, or migrate to the U.S.A.
In fact, when Trump tried to create a Travel ban, guess who were kicking, and screaming against it, many Jews, that's right.
Jewish groups join criticism of Trump’s updated travel ban
They both are bad, but the Israelis are an enemy of Palestinians, obviously Israel bombing British targets was akin biting the British hand that fed them Israel.
The Israelis are the enemy of the Arab Palestinians?! Then why should one give high-level medical care to her enemies?!
(I disagree with you, btw, Israel is not the enemy of the Gazan people. Hamas is. A government which robs her citizens of resources (financial, humanitarian, practical, real resources) in order to harry a neighboring sovereign State with low-level, ineffective, pointless hostile actions is an enemy of her people).
The U.S.A allows nations it's fought like Iraqis, or Afghanis to travel, or migrate to the U.S.A.
In fact, when Trump tried to create a Travel ban, guess who were kicking, and screaming against it, many Jews, that's right.
Jewish groups join criticism of Trump’s updated travel ban
Because Jews were refugees also. The Pope also criticized Trump's travel ban.
Why would a people with no true homeland, because Jews stole it, not be hostile to Jews?
Well, THAT is an interesting and, possibly, valid critique of Israel. If you want to start a thread on what the proper response to constant rocket attacks, stabbing attacks, suicide bombs, car rammings, shootings, etc IS -- then let's do it. Start a thread and I'll meet you there.Every situation is overkill, and even more hostile than the Palestinians.
