One year on from Israel’s most severe military offensive on Gaza since 2014, rebuilding the lives and homes of those affected remains a priority. But there will be no sustainable recovery until the root causes of Gaza’s perpetual health crisis are finally addressed. Email your MP today, and urge them to demand that the UK government takes real action to address the root causes of the health crisis.
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During 11 days of devastating violence in May 2021, 261 Palestinians were killed, including 67 children, and more than 2,200 injured. Israel’s bombardment damaged 33 healthcare centres – including Gaza’s only COVID-19 testing laboratory – and killed two doctors and a psychologist.
Attacks on healthcare in Gaza are fuelled by chronic impunity. Time and again, Palestinian medics, hospitals, clinics and ambulances have come under attack by Israeli forces. Israel systematically fails to undertake genuine investigations into these attacks, and those responsible are not held accountable.
As one UN investigation stated: “The occupied Palestinian territory is one of the most dangerous places in the world to be a health worker.”
What’s more, two million Palestinians in Gaza still live under illegal closure and blockade. Israel’s suffocating restrictions have devastated Gaza’s healthcare system and economy – leaving 63% of people dependent on international aid – and routinely prevent patients from accessing care.
In 2016, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon stated that “The closure of Gaza … is a collective punishment for which there must be accountability.”
Fifteen years since this collective punishment began, there has still been no accountability. Instead, international attention and aid has dwindled, Gaza continues to de-develop, and its population suffers a perpetual crisis of health, dignity, and hope.