Minister of Health Mai Al-Kila said today, Wednesday, that the Israeli occupation is increasing its racism and restricting the movement of medical staff and patients, especially between cities and in Area C, and to and from the Gaza Strip and in Jerusalem.
During her speech before the health sectoral working group, Al-Kaila appealed to the countries of the world and international human rights organizations and institutions to curb Israeli practices against the Palestinian people, provide a healthy environment for prisoners inside the occupation prisons , provide the necessary treatment for sick prisoners, especially cancer patients, and stop the occupation ’s violation of treatment centers.
Al-Kila chaired the group’s meeting, which was held today, in the presence of the group’s vice president, the Italian Consul General in Jerusalem Giuseppe Fedelli, the director of the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation Gugliemlo Giordano, and the group’s technical advisor (WHO) - Director of its office in Palestine, Dr. Richard Peppercorn.
The meeting included representatives of international donor institutions, the United Nations bodies concerned with the health sector, representatives of the European Union, the US government, the World Bank, Norway and Germany, and a representative of the Prime Minister´s Office, Stefan Salameh, and Cuadu from the Ministries of Health and Finance.
Al-Kaila reviewed the reality of the Palestinian health sector, the health work strategy, work priorities and the challenges facing Palestine at the level of the health sector.
She stressed that the Palestinian health sector, like other sectors, suffers greatly as a result of the financial blockade that the occupation seeks to impose on Palestine, and the lack of international support and aid, and the extent to which this greatly affects the provision of treatment services to citizens.
The Minister of Health said: The great lack of support for the Palestinian health sector has led to a severe shortage of medicines, especially medicines for cancer patients, in addition to the decrease in support for Jerusalem hospitals.
Al-Kaila referred to the directives of President Mahmoud Abbas and the Palestinian government to support hospitals in Jerusalem, appealing to the countries of the world to support these hospitals, which provide many treatment services for our people, especially cancer patients.
She said: The Palestinian health sector always works within two parallel tracks, a permanent state of emergency, especially due to the violations of the occupation against our people, and continuous development in terms of infrastructure, services and capacity enhancement, and we have passed the Corona pandemic with great effectiveness and success that we are proud of globally, due to the proper management of the pandemic and the efforts of partners and supporters. donors and health staff.
Al-Kaila called for increasing support for the Palestinian health sector at various financial and technical levels, stressing that the Palestinian Ministry of Health is moving forward with development and raising the quality of health service provided to our people.
The Director General of Financial Affairs in the Ministry, Hakim Salahat, reviewed the financial situation of the ministry, and the significant impact that the lack of international support has on Jerusalem’s hospitals and their ability to provide the necessary treatment and medicines needed by patients.
For his part, the Italian Consul General, Giuseppe Fedeli, appealed to the countries of the world and international donor institutions to support and strengthen the resilience of the Palestinian health sector, pointing to the significant impact of the lack of support on the continued provision of humanitarian treatment services to the Palestinians.
The Director of the World Health Organization office in Palestine, Dr. Richard Peppercorn on the great efforts made by the Palestinian Ministry of Health in developing the health system at various levels, and he also said that the Corona pandemic affected various sectors in Palestine, and this in turn required the health sector to provide a lot of material and technical support, adding: International stresses the need for the Palestinian health sector for more support in order to continue to provide the necessary treatment and bring about further development.
The meeting included many interventions by representatives and attendees, who stressed the necessity and necessity of urgent support for the Palestinian health sector and strengthening its steadfastness.
