Health Work Committees statement regarding
the humanitarian situation in
HWC
The Israeli occupation army has been bombarding
Prior to the present incidents,
On 25 June 2006, the Palestinian resistance movement
succeeded in attacking a military post surrounding
These latest Israeli occupation army atrocities are
the outcome of the continued Israeli occupation, which culminates in punishing
a whole population and forcing them into inhumane circumstances that endanger
not only their livelihood but also their lives.
The Israeli occupation army sealed off
Jan Egeland, the UN emergency relief coordinator stated
on June 30, “We are very worried about the situation in the Gaza Strip and, in
particular, the shortages of power and water, the effect on sewage, and
humanitarian access. Civilians are caught in the middle of a vicious circle of
action and reaction, exemplifying how disproportionately they pay the price.”
To further
suffocate the population, the Rafah International Crossing Point has been
completely since
The numbers read as follows:
200,000 households in the Gaza Strip lost their main
or only source of electricity
112,000 citizens in
21,000 children cannot attend kindergartens and summer
camps
150,000 children suffer from post traumatic stress
disorders
22 hospitals lost electricity and are presently
running on generators
50 emergency operations are performed per day
200 scheduled operations are performed per day
250 patients with kidney failure need dialysis
2500 asthmatic children depend on oxygen and
nebulizers
230 deliveries are expected daily, many of those
needing caesarian section.
Laboratories, blood banks and refrigerators will soon
have to quit operation when their generators run out of fuel.
Prior to this destruction, about 194,000 households
suffered from poverty. Of those, 150,000 subsisted on less than US $ 2.00/ day.
According to various Israeli sources including the
Israeli daily, Yediot Ahronot, the invasion of
The Health Work Committees strongly condemns the
criminal actions committed by the Israeli occupation army against the
Palestinian people.
The Health Work Committees calls upon the
international community to provide immediate protection for Palestinian lives
and property, as stipulated in International Humanitarian Law and International
Human Rights Law.
The Health Work Committees calls upon the
international community to exert pressure on Israeli government to respect
International Humanitarian Law, especially the Fourth Geneva Convention.
The Health Work Committees calls for the immediate end
to collective punishment imposed by the Israeli occupation army against the
Palestinian people.
The Health Work Committees calls on the international community and on all Geneva Convention signatories to exert utmost pressure on the Israeli occupation government to cease its inhumane military action immediately.
The Health Work Committees calls on the international community to declare the current
Israeli aggression a war crime according to Article 146 of the Geneva Convention.
The Health Work Committees calls on all humanitarian
organizations and bodies to extend emergency relief to the people of
The Health Work Committees calls on the Palestinian
humanitarian organizations to stand in solidarity with the people of
The Health Work Committees calls on the international
community to bring an immediate end to the Israeli occupation, the cause of all
the suffering and bloodshed.
Dr: Ahmad Maslamani G Director HWC
The Health Work Committees
July 1, 2006