[wvns] How Much Lower Can We Sink?
A detailed and scathing first hand account of just how close to death
Gaza's civilians are, under merciless lockdown by their israeli wardens.
Read it and weep, America.
israelis do this not only with our government's blessing but with our
tax dollars.
See Gaza and Weep
Stuart Littlewood
http://www.wakeupfromyourslumber.com/node/4827
(In the run-up to "Annapolis", Stuart Littlewood went to Gaza on an
unusual mission. He joined a party of priests bringing moral support
to the Christian community and to its Muslim neighbours, all suffering
horribly under Israel's collective punishment and cruel siege.)
Traffic into Gaza through the elaborate new border "facility" at Erez
is down to a tiny trickle these days since Israel branded the
Palestinian seaside enclave a "hostile entity". The purpose of our
visit was to bring moral support to elderly Fr. Manuel, who ministers
to his flock, runs an excellent school (for Christians and Muslims)
and is revered as a local hero. Should he ever leave Gaza, the Israeli
authorities will not allow his return, so he has allowed himself to be
incarcerated there for 9 years. He'd had no visitors since February
and when he heard we were coming, said a colleague, he burst into tears.
We also wanted to show solidarity with the whole courageous
population, Muslim and Christian, and apologise for the British
government's indifference to Israel's military onslaught, the spiteful
economic sanctions and the West's meddling in Palestine's democratic
affairs.
Thanks to our noisy arrival at breakneck speed through Gaza's streets
with a police escort and sirens blaring – that's VIP treatment here -
our small group quickly grew into a media circus. The Rafah crossing
into Egypt, now permanently closed, then followed the barrier wall
down to the sea and the coast road back to Gaza City. On the way I
noted the deserted beaches and the disused fishing boats. Israel has
banned fishing off the Gaza coast, ruined the livelihoods of 3,000
licensed fishermen and their families, and impoverished the local diet.
The military fires on boats that defy the ban. Palestinians are also
prevented from developing maritime trade or natural resources within
their territorial waters. Gaza is just 365 sq km - 45 km long, up to
12 km wide and entirely sealed from the outside world by an Israeli
fence guarded by watchtowers, snipers and tanks. Israel controls
Gaza's airspace, coastal waters and airwaves. A vast prison with
air-strikes, beach shelling, troops, tanks, armoured bulldozers,
uncaring of civilian casualties.
Whilst much has been blasted into rubble or skeletal remains, this was
once an attractive place and many fine buildings survive. So does the
defiant community, though wearied by years of humiliation and
occupation. Gaza could easily blossom into a coastal paradise; a
prosperous, independent trading state. But Israel's hatred of Gaza and
its people is terrifying. The economy is strangulated and for 1.5
million souls, life is hell.
Fuel and candles are running out. Supplies of basics are exhausted, so
even hygiene is fast becoming impossible. Power cuts disrupt hospital
treatment and what few drugs there are cannot be kept refrigerated.
Many look death in the face as medi-care collapses.
Flour to make bread has doubled in price; cement for concrete to
repair damaged homes and infrastructure has gone up 1,000 percent!
Some schools are having to teach three shifts a day. It is truly a
humanitarian crisis, as the UN and various charities have repeatedly
warned Western governments. A friend emailed: "Today in Gaza ... we
have no cement to build graves for those who die."
A communiqué received from the Ministry of Health in Gaza reveals the
stark reality:
Cancer patients: Of 450 patients 35% are children and 25% women. They
are forbidden to leave Gaza for medical treatment or surgery. For
many, there is no medication because cancer drugs cannot cross the border.
Renal Failure patients: 400 should undergo dialysis three times a
week, but machine break-downs have cut this to twice a week, with
serious consequences for patients.
Hemodialysis machines: Of 69 machines in 4 hospitals 20 are out of
order. Israel blocks supply of spares deeming them not humanitarian
items. 3 more have exceeded their design
Cardiac patients: 400-450 patients suffer from severe shortage of drugs.
No spares can be shipped in for therapeutic and diagnostic equipment
that breaks down.
Stock levels
Zero stock of 85 items of essential medical drugs.
Zero stock of 12 items of essential psychiatric drugs. 2 weeks' stock
of anaesthetics for surgery, after which the theatres will close down.
Zero stock of X-ray bags and sterilization bags.
Near zero stock of stationery: medical files and examination forms.
These are re-used several times risking errors in documentation.
Severe shortage of cloth and dressings, barely enough body bags and
hospital bed covers.
Zero stocks of patients' food in all hospitals.
2 weeks' stock of hospital cleaning fluids.
Diesel and gas stocks for under 15 days.
Severe shortages of medical disposables, lab materials and blood bank
materials. "The total number of people who died as a result of the
border closure since June has risen to 44. Prevention of patients from
travelling and prevention of entry of food, milk formula and fuel is
an organized crime committed by the Israeli occupation to exhaust and
destroy the health sector, as part of the Israeli policy to kill and
humiliate our people", conclude the Health Ministry.
Physicians for Human Rights, have attempted to bring seriously ill
residents out of Gaza for proper hospital treatment, but even requests
on behalf of advanced cancer cases are invariably refused. So they die
in agony. 20 year-old Nail Al Kurdi, succumbed only a week ago, still
waiting for permission to cross. For five months PHR submitted request
after request to let him through, and even petitioned the High Court
of Justice, but each time he was refused "for security reasons". Two
days later an 8 year-old boy also died waiting for medical treatment
in Israel. I'm told he had the necessary permit but was repeatedly
turned back at the border.
It is estimated that a thousand patients – advanced cases of kidney
disease and cancer and those badly injured by Israeli air-strikes -
need immediate transfers. In the meantime (UK) Channel 4 News reports,
Israel blackmails chronically sick patients. If they agree to inform
on relatives and friends they can cross the border for treatment… if
not they can "stay in Gaza and die".
The International Committee of the Red Cross repeatedly reminds that
Israel is obliged under international law to ensure that humanitarian
supplies reach Palestinian civilians. Yet I learned that medicinal
drugs purchased with money from sales of my book "Radio Free
Palestine", could not be delivered and would have to be smuggled in
somehow.
On 11th October, the European Parliament passed a resolution calling
on the Israeli government to lift the blockade of the Gaza Strip and
fulfil its international obligations guaranteeing the flow of
humanitarian aid, and assistance and essential services.
Luisa Morgantini, Vice President of the European Parliament, said: "I
was recently in Gaza and I saw how the Strip is suffocating in a
serious humanitarian crisis due to the raids and the closure imposed
by the Israeli Army: massive devastation of public facilities and
private homes, the disruption of hospitals, clinics and schools, the
denial of access to proper drinking water, food and electricity, and
the destruction of agricultural land wanted by Israel, create a true
catastrophe for civilians. ..."
The EU has demanded that the Israeli government fully respects human
rights and international law and ends not only the emergency in Gaza
but also the military occupation of the West Bank, where Israel
continues its theft of Palestinian land with impunity. Instead of
complying, Israel has declared Gaza a "hostile entity" and
ratcheted-up the misery, announcing that "additional sanctions will be
placed on the Hamas regime".
Hamas, was democratically elected as the Palestinian government in
2006, thus a legitimate power, while Israel is an illegal armed
occupier. As to whether Hamas is a "terrorist organisation"… let's
first check the definition of terrorism. PHR investigated the effects
of ammunition used by the Israeli Defence Force in Gaza and the West
Bank. They found that the high-velocity 5.56mm/.223 calibre round
fired by the M-16 weapon, widely used by the IDF, "tends to break open
on impact causing a `lead storm' in tissue, even without impacting a
bone… and large temporary cavities, and extensive damage to muscle,
nerves and blood vessels, as well as fracture. The massive tissue
destruction… produces a frightening clinical presentation which
greatly challenges the surgeons. When there are many such injuries,
medical resources are stressed to the limit."
The majority of victims of these injuries will have permanent damage
in the affected leg. Witness reports to PHR team and information to
other human rights organizations, suggest those injured in this manner
were unarmed and at most throwing stones."
As guests in this tight-knit Gaza community we had been invited for
coffee at the House of Fatah and the residence of Hamas Prime
Minister, Ismail Haniya. Relations between religious and political
factions seem friendly and good humoured and they stand together
against a merciless enemy. There is broadly no trouble between Muslims
and Christians - a small miracle considering that their tormentor has
powerful Christian backing.
As the whirlwind visit came to an end, taking our leave entailed the
wrench of saying goodbye to brave people the West has trampled and
written off, then running the gauntlet of Israel's horrendous border
security. It was back to Erez and its state-of-the-art
de-humanisation, to shuffle through a maze of steel gates, cattle pens
and a sinister X-ray machine, on Israeli command, and queue
interminably for questioning by the rudest people on earth.
Only 50 or 60 people had gone through the crossing that day, so the
3-hour hold-up was entirely down to Israeli bloody-mindedness.
Complaining to Her Majesty's Government seems pointless: the
responsible British foreign office Minister is a former chairman of
Labour Friends of Israel.
In spite of all, there is astonishing pride and resilience among the
Gazans. However if you kick, murder and starve and commit crimes
against humanity often enough, a victory of sorts can be yours. But
tell us, Mr Gordon Brown, why is Britain complicit in such a base and
cowardly scheme? We hit bottom in Iraq… how much lower can we sink?
Gaza was formerly under British mandate, surely sufficient reason to
feel special responsibility for its wellbeing. Yet it is not even on
the government's agenda at Annapolis. For Gazans, the "final status
negotiations" was a sick joke.
So I urge the British government: "Go see for yourselves the misery,
the human tragedy and the devastation you have heaped on these people.
Then amaze us. Lift this cruel siege and end 90 years of betrayal that
has so shamed Britain.
"Land supplies on Gaza's empty beach: Palestinian territorial waters.
Suspend all trade association agreements until Israel complies with UN
resolutions and International Court of Justice rulings, ends its
unlawful occupation and withdraws behind pre-1967 borders. Realise
that Israel is no Western-style democracy but a ruthless ethnocracy.
And when British voters finally discover that half their MPs are
signed-up Friends of Israel, they will question how such slavish
devotion to this foreign military power can possibly be in the best
interest of our Christian and increasingly Muslim-inclusive, nation."
To the Bush administration and its admirers: "You may be the most
powerful but you are the most hated. Watch out when decent Americans
finally understand what their tax dollars have been paying for in the
Holy Land." And, lastly, to church leaders in western Christendom:
"Are you going to sit there while the Holy Land is stolen from under
your noses?"
===
Dear Friends,
Please see Gaza's grim situations. It's getting much worse here in
Gaza. I had a loss of a relative some days ago due to medicine
shortages in Gaza and now number of people dying due to medical
shortages is increasing. Please pass this article on and let the world
know what's going on here! http://www.newstatesman.com/200712100003
The article was published at New Statesman, UK's leading magazine. If
you have any questions or comments, please don't hesitate to contact me.
Peace and love from Palestine,
Mohammed
******************************
The grim reality in Gaza
Mohammed Omer
10 December 2007
www.rafahtoday.org
Mohammed Omer reports on shortages in Gaza from crucial medical
supplies through children's winter clothing to fuel
Traffic in the Gaza Strip slowed to a trickle last week, and this week
medical centres have scaled back treatment in the medicines and
sustenance-destitute Strip.
"Israel's decision is a death penalty: our reserve of fuel is almost
zero and it may very likely run out by the end of today," said Khaled
Radi, Ministry of Health spokesman for the dismissed Hamas government.
Radi spoke in reference to the 30 November Israeli Supreme Court
decision to allow further fuel cutbacks, severe reductions which are
crippling Gaza's residents in all aspects of life. Prior to that
ruling, as early as October Israel decided to begin limiting fuel,
with Gaza soon after enduring serious cuts of over 50% of fuel needs,
a dire statistic confirmed by the UN body OCHA.
At the Nahal Oz crossing, through which all fuel enters Gaza, the
Palestinian petrol authority reported that Israel has delivered around
only 190,000 litres of diesel a day since late October, falling short
of the 350,000 litres needed by the Gaza Strip. This number plummeted
on 29 November, with Israel delivering a scanty 60,000 litres, only
marginally improving three days later, 2 December, with a delivery of
90,000 litres.
This week's increased cutbacks resulted in a several day closure of
Gaza's petrol stations, owners striking in protest to the pittance of
fuel allowed in–just one quarter of that normally received.
Gaza's Association for Fuel Station Owners commented: "Petrol firms
considered the amount negligible and so, in protest over the Israeli
blockade, refused to accept the paltry offering which does not come
close to meeting the essential needs of Gaza's civilians."
A Gaza taxi driver related his concern: "Cutting off fuel means
cutting off our lives. We use it for everything, in the place of wood
or coal. It's tragic not only that Israel is imposing this siege on
Gaza, but also that some Palestinians are supporting this cruel
embargo, with the naïve idea of causing the people turn against Hamas
in Gaza."
Shortages of fuel have greatly affected the public transportation
system, leaving students from universities in Gaza City delayed for
hours standing in wait for transportation back to Khan Younies and
Rafah in the south.
Trickle Effect
The fuel cuts in turn impede water access: with diesel-run pumps
unable to function, leaving over 77,000 without fresh drinking water,
according to Gaza's water utility. Oxfam International has warned that
soon 225,000 Gazans could suffer from inadequate water supplies,
raising concerns for public health.
Ambulances and clinics suffer too, a fact reiterated by Khaled Radi,
who related how fuel shortages have already brought some ambulances to
a standstill: "This has affected the mobility of ambulances which are
especially vital during on-going Israeli air strikes such as that of
this morning."
He added that shortages further threatened to close essential clinics,
which rely on back-up generators during the frequent electricity
shortages in the Strip. Two first aid health centres have already been
forced to suspend treatment during electricity cuts. Those that remain
open suffer from want of medical supplies, with 91 of 416 essential
medicines depleted, according to the WHO.
Even basic things are scarce. Residents are hard-pressed to find a
piece of glass to repair a broken window, imperative in December's
cold weather, particularly in a time when electricity and gas are
scarce-to-absent.
Eyad Yousef, a 31-year-old Palestinian teacher, has been waiting for
cement, unavailable for the last many months, to enter Gaza.
Concurrently, prices of building materials have skyrocketed, more than
tripled in the worst cases. Yousef waits for any sort of building
material, but he knows that will not find anything, as he has looked
all over the picked-clean area. "I have a floor of my home to finish,
but can't do so yet as no sort of building materials are available in
Gaza," he said. "I'm using pieces of nylon to cover my windows at
home, but I can't go on like this for long," he added, saying he hopes
that the international community will put pressure on Israel to open
borders and let vital products into Gaza.
Death Penalty
Yousef, at least, is luckier than the newly dead: since last month at
least 31 medical patients have died in Gaza, a result of Israel's
lockdown on borders and preventing of medical access to Israeli,
Egyptian and Jordanian hospitals, as well as West Bank hospitals.
Since Hamas took over power in June, this subsequent Israeli lockdown
has made it virtually impossible for Palestinians to get out of Gaza.
The situation then deteriorated with the closing of Karni crossing,
Gaza's only commercial crossing, only opened for the most basic food
essentials. Coupled with Israel's ground and air attacks, the
situation for Palestinians worsened yet further still when Israel last
October announced Gaza as a "hostile entity", further allowing Israel
to justify its closed-borders policy to the international arena.
In the densely-populated region starved of medical supplies, and now
facing the shutdown of clinics, Gazan citizens have been given a death
sentence with Israel's control over borders. Yahya Al Jamal 53, one
case among hundreds of people, has cancer and is in serious need of
medical care at well-equipped hospitals. For more than two months now
he has been refused entry to Israel for treatment. His agonized father
reported that his son will die in the coming days if he does not get
the medication he needs, an outcome of Israel's mass denial of the
luxury of critical healthcare.
Insult upon injuries, cement – already scarce for building – is no
longer available even for graves of the many recently dead.
Empty Stocks
Aid agencies like the World Food Program (WFP) reporting that food
imports are only enough to meet 41 per cent of demand in the Gaza Strip.
As winter progresses, resilient citizens desperately seek to survive.
In Rafah's Saturday market, Umm Mohammed Zourub scours the stalls yet
again: "I've been looking for new winter clothes for my children, but
I haven't been able to find any because no materials are coming into
Gaza with the closed borders," the 43 year old mother lamented.
Indeed, the cold weather has fallen quickly on an
internationally-isolated and starved population. From the intense heat
of summer months, where water was scarce and air conditioning a
fantasy, Gazans now experience the bitter cold in the same homes
unprepared for extremes, and the bitter realization that, once again,
they have been left to the whims of imprisonment, Israeli air and
ground attacks, and a staggering invisibility in the international realm.
"The world is not dangerous because of those who do harm but because
of those who look at it without doing anything."
Albert Einstein
*********************************************************************
WORLD VIEW NEWS SERVICE
To subscribe to this group, send an email to:
wvns-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
NEWS ARCHIVE IS OPEN TO PUBLIC VIEW
http://finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/wvns/
Need some good karma? Appreciate the service?
Please consider donating to WVNS today.
Email ummyakoub@yahoo.com for instructions.
To leave this list, send an email to:
wvns-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvns/
<*> Your email settings:
Individual Email | Traditional
<*> To change settings online go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wvns/join
(Yahoo! ID required)
<*> To change settings via email:
mailto:wvns-digest@yahoogroups.com
mailto:wvns-fullfeatured@yahoogroups.com
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
wvns-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
No comments:
Post a Comment