Statement No. 1
The Arab Foundation for Civil and Political Rights – Nedal understands the position of the Egyptian authorities rejecting any forced displacement of Palestinians and the close out of the Palestinian cause and stresses the necessity of respecting the sovereignty of the Arab Republic of Egypt over its entire territory and its border strip in Rafah.
Whereas, according to the spokesman for the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza, Dr. Ashraf Al-Qudra
- There has been at Gaza Strip from the beginning of the war until the beginning of February, considering the collapse of the medical system in Palestine:
- More than 8 thousand cases of viral hepatitis infection
- Hundreds of miscarriages and premature births because of panic and displacement
- The lives of about 60,000 pregnant women are at risk of pregnancy complications.
- 350,000 chronic patients are in a dangerous state because of the lack of medicines and their lack of entry into the Gaza Strip
- 10,000 cancer patients are exposed to serious complications that claim the lives of dozens of patients every day because of the lack of medicines and lack of health care.
According to the government media office in the Gaza Strip
- There has been at Gaza Strip from the beginning of the war until the beginning of February, considering the collapse of the medical system in Palestine:
- 66,452 injured because of the war
- 11,000 wounded people need to travel for treatment, “saving and critical lives.”
- 10,000 cancer patients face the risk of death.
- 700,000 people infected with infectious diseases because of displacement.
- 8,000 cases of viral hepatitis infection due to displacement
- 60,000 pregnant women are at risk due to lack of access to health care.
- 350,000 patients with chronic diseases are at risk due to non-administration of medications.
Based on the logic of our respect for Egypt’s sovereignty over all its lands, including the Rafah border crossing, the Refugee and Displaced Persons Support Unit of the Arab Foundation for Civil and Political Rights – Nedal calls on the government of the Arab Republic of Egypt to remove all obstacles facing sick and injured Palestinians stranded in the Gaza Strip or who have arrived through security coordination at hospitals of the Arab Republic of Egypt, where they receive treatment, but are treated as if they are in detention.
The Refugee Support Unit monitored many obstacles and violations occurring against sick and injured people in the Gaza Strip, which increases their suffering, including, but not limited to:
- First, the security coordination process for the entry of sick and injured people into Egyptian territory
According to the circular of the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza issued on January 6, security coordination is the only way for sick and injured people to enter Egypt. The previously mentioned circular stated that coordination takes place as follows:
- Require hospitals to register all wounded and sick people through a computerized system.
- Submit these lists to the Egyptian authorities for review.
- After approval, the Egyptian side issues a list of the names of patients allowed to cross.
- The Ministry of Health publishes this list on its platforms after obtaining approval from Egypt.
- These lists require subsequent approval from the Israeli authorities, and the injured or sick person is allowed to accompany only one companion, provided that Israeli approval is also required.
We believe that security coordination between the Egyptian, Palestinian and even Israeli sides for the entry of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip is understandable to ensure that the aid is not targeted by Israeli forces, which is normal under these circumstances.
However, we see that requiring the approval of the Israeli authorities on the final lists receiving treatment in Egypt is a matter that violates Egyptian sovereignty and is unjustified. It is illogical to claim that Israel is targeting them inside Egyptian territory.
- Secondly, the restrictions imposed on sick and injured people and their families inside Egypt:
There is no doubt that we value the role that Egypt plays considering the collapse of the medical system in Gaza because of the war. There is no doubt that Egyptian hospitals and rehabilitation homes are playing a good role, but apart from the medical aspect, Egyptian hospitals and rehabilitation homes have turned into what resemble places of detention, where the injured and sick or their families are not allowed moving inside hospitals, communicating with the outside world directly or by communicating through mobile phones. If visits are allowed to relatives, there is a security personnel nearby and they are not allowed to speak alone, as is the practice in high-security prisons in Egypt.
The Arab Foundation for Civil and Political Rights – Nedal calls on the Egyptian government to impose its full sovereignty over the crossing, expand the process of evacuating the sick and injured stranded in the Palestinian territories, facilitate the entry of escorts, and amend the conditions for security coordination.
It also calls on the Egyptian authorities to treat the sick and injured on Egyptian territory as free, not detained, and to fully allow visits and enable them to move inside hospitals and communicate with the outside world directly and indirectly without restrictions.we understand no 1
