![Israeli authorities approved fewer than half the medical permit requests it received in 2017, the lowest level since 2008 [File: Reuters]](http://www.aljazeera.com/mritems/imagecache/mbdxxlarge/mritems/Images/2018/2/13/44ca8f867ec1430a854c8fc938a9b6a6_18.jpg)
In the last year, hundreds of medical permit requests in Gaza have been denied, making Israel responsible for many deaths. So far in the last year, 54 people have died due to Israel's negligence. In the year of 2017, Israeli authorities approved less than half of the permit requests they received. This meant that thousands of people's lives were in jeopardy due to a lack of healthcare coverage. Not only are their requests denied, but Israel makes it very difficult for people to seek medical attention. For example, would be that children must have a guardian over the age of 50 to travel, meaning they cannot get the access of medical attention they need. All the applications that have not been seen yet or that are "under review" are put through a long waiting period, and many of the applicants end up having to reschedule. Those in need of emergency care also have to apply for medical permits meaning not all Gazans are guaranteed care. This surmises the deadly situation occurring in Gaza that Israel has caused. This current predicament demonstrates how Israel really feels about Gaza and their lack of empathy for the citizens living there.
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Discussion questions
1. What could Israel do to decrease these health issues in Gaza?
2. Who else could the people turn to in these serious life or death situations?
3. Is Israel ethically responsible for the deaths of the people?
Israel is indirectly responsible for the people who died because they couldn't get medical treatment. I understand that Israel is trying to maintain security and isolate Hamas with the blockade, but many innocent civilians are suffering and dying as a result. What I don't understand is why Israel is denying children medical permits, even to a 7 year old girl with cancer. The requirement of children needing a guardian over 50 to travel also doesn't make sense to me; I don't see why a guardian of any adult age won't suffice.
ReplyDeletePalestinians living in Gaza don't have anyone else to turn to for medical aid, since Egypt has also mostly closed its borders with Gaza. They are even in danger of having no medical access at all because there is little to no fuel available to power hospital generators.
This entire issue is based on the power struggle in Israel. After being suppressed Palestinians continually feel hurt by Israeli forces, this includes medical aid. Making life difficult for people in Gaza or the West Bank only strengthen the idea that Israel is better and that the Palestinians should leave. I feel that the lack of support in Pakistan extends to nations that only support Israel.
ReplyDeleteIsrael is indirectly responsible for the deaths of the many Gazians who were not given a medical permit, or those who were not able to receive treatment in time. Though Israel's need for security makes sense, their need to reject so many of the permit requests is baffling. Israel is going to be responsible for the current 11,281 applicants that are waiting for approval. The approval not only gives them a medical permit, but a chance to regain there life back. They get the access they need for their medical troubles. When (for it is a matter of when, not if) they are denied, they lose that chance of a better life, a life where they get the medical attention they need. Israel is going to be indirectly responsible for those deaths, as they are the ones who are, more often than not, rejecting those applications; they are rejecting the applications of those wanting to live. And as for the innocent children... why must they have a guardian over 50? What if their parents are young? Must they be sent with a stranger? What good is it sending a cancer ridden child with a stranger? Their parent should be the ones to take the child, in the rare case their application is accepting. I understand Israel wants secure borders, but I don't understand why it must come at the cost of thousands of innocent peoples' lives.
ReplyDeleteI think that Israel is not ethically responsible for their deaths. Israel is currently having many problems with terrorists coming from all sides. Because of the problems that those terrorists cause to the Israelis, Israel must focus on its own internal problems and should not have to deal with something that is technically a state. While this may seem racist to many, the possibility of terrorism usually bears fruit around their earlier adults years. This means that adults past the age of fifty is just right given the margin of safety to ensure a decrease in terrorism occurring using these permits. It's not just important to the country as a whole. Currently, Israel is facing corruption problems in its government. This means that it is not a time to be focusing on someone else's problems. There should only be help done when the ones giving help are not in a problem. It simply does not make sense as a human being to simply sacrifice the few things important to you for the sake of the many things that to most officials and people involved with the permits are simply numbers on a chart or a piece of paper out of a veritable sea of papers. The only ones who would do something like that without flinching are heroes and these people are not heroes. They are ordinary people dealing with problems of their own and living a life in an environment where it would not be strange to think that people above, below, and around you are your enemies. They have as much troubles that are just as big to them as cancer or disease is to the people who have them. Is it ethically correct for us to preach about lives and morality when we are not right there living and experiencing the things that they are with them? I really don't think that it is all right for people to think that something is just morally wrong when we don't even know most if not almost all of the facts and feelings involved in this mess.
ReplyDeleteIsrael is partially responsible for the deaths of the people of Gaza. Although Israel has its own struggles to worry about, Gaza is in an unfortunate state, and its people are in desperate need of help. The people in Gaza are suffering, and have no way of getting the funds they need to help injured or sick people because of trade restrictions forced on them by Israel. Israel could possibly help decrease the number of fatalities by easing up on some of the trade restrictions.
ReplyDeleteOne possible idea that Israel could do as a solution is to agree to the one state solution, which would make the people of Gaza their people, and give them incentive to help. The people of Gaza could also seek aid from other big Arab countries near them like Egypt. However because is not in control of Gaza it is not entirely their fault.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Israel is not completely ethically responsible for the deaths of the people of Gaza. Israel correctly has their hands full with their own problems and chose to focus on the problems that directly effect the people of their own nation. Israel is currently having its own security concerns with terrorism that is putting their very own citizens at risk, and chooses to take on those problems. While the situation in Gaza may seem as Israel’s fault, they have to keep in mind the safety of their own citizens before anything else.
ReplyDeleteRather than a one state solution, as Trevor proposed, if Gaza became a part of Egypt, as was mentioned during our summit, they could receive a lot of help from such a large country. Gaza is in shambles right now and needs as much outside help as they can get to improve their economy and living conditions. In addition, I do not believe Israel is fully responsible for these issues, although they hold a lot of blame. Instead of helping the people who live in such an impoverished area, they turn away from their basic needs and leave them in, as Caitlyn said, a life or death situation
ReplyDeleteAlthough Israel is not completely responsible for the deaths, Israel do seem to have some issues related to Gaza. A possible solution to help decrease the health issues of Gaza is to agree to the one state solution. At the same time, many other conflicts may be resolved such as who controls Jerusalem and the equal education between Muslims and Jews. Based on the location of Gaza, they have no other people to turn to and receive help.
ReplyDeleteYes, Israel is indirectly responsible for the deaths of the people who requested a medical permit. But, Israel is dealing with many other troubles at the same time, for instance some of the permits were not given under the pretext of security for Israel. A thought I had was if there was a way for a third party medical care group that would be willing to step in and help the people of Gaza. For instance the UN could help and give some medical services.
ReplyDeleteIsrael is responsible for the deaths of these people. They have "assumed rights" over the Palestinians and control them in almost all aspects of life from border control to other basic living rights. If Israeli's believe they are responsible for these aspects of life, then they are obligated to be responsible for healthcare as well. It's an "all or none" situation, Israel can't pick and chose what they want to be responsible for. If they believe they have the right to control Palestinians in daily life, then they have the right to control them during medical situations. For these reasons I think Israel is responsible for the deaths of these Palestinians who they are refusing healthcare to. In addition, Israeli people are the one's denying the healthcare and by this denial, they are causing the deaths of many people so they should automatically be the ones held responsible. If it weren't for their permit process, the Palestinians could have gotten healthcare and the help they needed.
ReplyDeleteOne vary simple thing Israel can do to decrease health issues is to lax the requirements to be eligible for a medical permit. They would not be spending much more money to do this or have to hire new people, they would simply have to lax requirements. Another, less simple, solution would be to hire doctors and send them over to the Gaza strip to provide aid. Though this would not follow Israels normal actions and would not support their ideals, it would be a smart move. Politically, the move would be supported by the international community and would be approved of by the Arab community. Lastly, it would save lives and make lives easier. One more solution to the issue would be to make a committee of people specifically to look through permits and make sure the applications are legit and reasonable. This would not only create more jobs but would be relatively easy to accomplish.
ReplyDeleteThis article, to me, raises more questions than it answers. How are Palestinians being denied permits? Given that Israel is a richer country, perhaps they have more medical permits not out of spite but because there are more qualified Israeli doctors. In addition, why does Palestine need Israeli medical permits? Could Palestine distribute provisional permits in the absence of Israeli ones? Could doctors without permits provide "under the table" treatment? When answers to these questions are available, I think a more complete picture could be painted and a solution could be found.
ReplyDeleteWell, all things considered, yeah, I definitely think there is blood on Israeli hands for what occurred. I do not believe that social tension should ever compromise the rightful provision of medical assistance. Israel shouldn't be able to just single out what groups of people they are responsible for, as the Gazans fall under their support. It is also crucial that Israel take into firsthand account the eligibility of the Palestinian applicants, and acknowledge the issue at hand. Clearly this is easier to recommend than it is likely to actually be done, but I believe it to be a crucial first step to at least leveling out the issues there, as Israel seems to not so subtly be trying to sweep it all under the rug. Maybe assistance from the UN could also come into play potentially depending on how messy the internal politics of the whole ordeal are. I would assume this to be the most likely initial solution at the current moment.
ReplyDeleteThe current state of Gaza and their economic instability is entirely Israel’s fault. In the past, Israel has blockaded the flow of commercial goods into Gaza due to the threat of Hamas potentially using imported materials to make weapons. This is somewhat reasonable, but Israel also cuts off basic supplies like fuel, which harms civilians by restricting access to electricity, medicine, and food. Gazans have nowhere to turn to, and Israel is responsible for their suffering. If Israel lifts these blockades, they could eliminate the issues of healthcare in Gaza at the root cause, which is a lack of resources. However, doing so would pose a risk to the safety of the Israeli people, who would be targeted more by attacks from Hamas.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Stacey that Gaza being apart of Egypt could be a good solution for many issues. Gaza is currently in terrible state, and would be able to receive help, including health care, from Egypt. It would also solve the problem of trying to connect Gaza and the West Bank, but separating Israel with the two-state solution. Also, though I don't believe Israel is directly responsible for the deaths of the Palestinians, I do think they played a part in their deaths because if they had allowed the Palestinians to get medical permits, then they may have lived.
ReplyDelete