Health Ministry: Gaza used as surplus medicine dump under guise of aid

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies + websites
5 Feb 2024 15:24
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The spokesperson for the Ministry of Health in Gaza warns that some entities are trying to transform Gaza into a dumping ground for surplus medications.

A Palestinian woman sits by houses destroyed in the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip in Rafah on November 20, 2023. (AP)

The spokesperson for the Ministry of Health in Gaza, Ashraf al-Qudra, stated that the healthcare system in Gaza is experiencing a further collapse after the Israeli occupation forces (IOF) put 30 hospitals in the Gaza Strip out of service.

He further highlighted that a substantial amount of medical assistance entering Gaza consists of COVID-19 kits, which the healthcare system in Gaza does not need.

Disposable COVID-19 protective medical gowns have been delivered to #Gaza as part of the aid packages sent to the embattled Strip, neglecting the urgent need for winter clothes, medicines, and food.

Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor reported that around 400,000 Palestinians in… pic.twitter.com/SmmKth4wVi
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) January 30, 2024

In further detail, he emphasized the urgent need to transfer about 7,000 critical cases requiring treatment outside the besieged Strip.

Al-Qudra also highlighted that some entities are trying to transform Gaza into a dumping ground for surplus medications and are endeavoring to bring in these drugs under the guise of humanitarian aid.

Survival amid the rubble

Meanwhile, to make matters even worse, forcibly displaced people in Gaza are seeking refuge in compromised structures, despite the heightened risk of safety due to potential structural collapses.

According to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), as of the end of January, over 1.7 million people, constituting more than 75% of Gaza's population, have been displaced.

UNRWA's earlier statement indicated that over 60% of Gaza's buildings have suffered damage from Israeli bombardment.

Families in the Jabalia refugee camp are now taking shelter among the ruins of a primary UN school, resorting to damaged or destroyed buildings, as safer alternatives have become scarce.

The school endured severe Israeli bombings in recent weeks. After the Israeli invading army's withdrawal, Palestinian families sought refuge in the school, adopting it as their new residence.

Residents in Gaza are facing a shortage of shelter options as the available schools are at full capacity, and tents lack sufficient protection from the rain, leaving these partially damaged structures as their last resort.

'Gaza is a massive human rights crisis and a humanitarian disaster'

Last week, the United Nations warned that “Gaza is a massive human rights crisis and a humanitarian disaster."

The situation is extremely dire, marked by staggering numbers. As reported by the Gaza Ministry of Health, more than 27,000 Palestinians have been killed, and over 65,000 have sustained injuries.

The ongoing rescue efforts reveal that several thousand people remain trapped under debris, indicating that the casualty figures are likely to rise, as per the UN.

Out of a population of 2.3 million, a staggering 1.9 million people have been displaced, creating an environment where there is no haven, it added.

Relentless bombardments by the IOF persist in both the north and the south, particularly in Khan Younis. Compounding the crisis is a severe shortage of essential supplies such as food, water, medicines, tents, and other necessities amid the cold weather.

The existing shelters are overcrowded, and sanitary conditions are appalling, the report added. In areas like Rafah and Khan Younis, sewage is flowing uncontrollably, creating a potential breeding ground for epidemics—"a ticking time bomb" for a health catastrophe, as per the UN.

It is worth noting that the Ministry of Health in Gaza announced, on Sunday, that the total number of Palestinians killed since October 7 to 27,365, in addition to 66,630 injuries.