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Years of funding cuts and the COVID-19 pandemic have devastated the Palestinian healthcare system.

The May bombardment of Gaza has only made the situation more dire. 
Immediate action is needed to address this crisis.

In both Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, under-resourced hospitals are struggling to meet the needs of the populations they serve. In Gaza, hospitals already overburdened by the COVID-19 crisis and its variants, must now also treat many people injured in the recent bombardment and in crackdowns on protests.

PHOTO, RIGHT:
17 May 2021 – Israeli jets bombed a residential building in Gaza and damaged dozens of adjacent buildings, including an orphanage, a high school, the Palestinian Ministry of Health offices, and Gaza's main coronavirus laboratory. (Middle East Eye/Mohammed al-Hajjar)

Medical centers and hospitals are low on funds, medicine, and medical supplies, as well as the fuel and electricity necessary to provide care, and desperately need assistance.

Patients in need of care are blocked from leaving Gaza. The World Health Organization has called for access to patients and free passage for those who need medical treatment.
Now we need to do the same! Tell Congress and the White House

Palestinians in the West Bank also face restrictions on access to medical care and COVID-19 vaccines, particularly in Area C, which is controlled by Israel, about 60% of the West Bank.

It's true, humanitarian aid cut by the Trump administration has been restored. But those awful years of reduced funding took a severe toll, and Palestinian hospitals are still struggling to catch up, let alone deal with a pandemic and widespread injuries.

The 2016 levels of funding cannot meet the unparalleled medical crises of 2021.

As U.S. funding for next year is being allocated now, let Congress and the White House know that the U.S. must do more for Palestine:
► INCREASE humanitarian assistance,
► DEMAND Israel provide equal access to medical care, and
► PUSH Israel to end the Gaza blockade.

Join thousands of faith activists and people of conscience
⬇︎ in sending this message to Washington DC! ⬇︎

Help UMKR continue this work!
For over 10 years, UMKR has been leading the struggle for Palestinian rights in the global United Methodist Church.

We also provide vital leadership in faith-based and secular coalitions in the US and across the world.

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we depend on those who believe it matters.

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About the Healthcare Crisis in Palestine

The Intercept:
Israel Attacks on Gaza Left Strained Health Care System in Tatters See it

Washington Post:
Gaza hospitals struggled with war injuries. Now comes feared
coronavirus surge from shelters See it

Medical Aid for Palestine (MAP):
COVID-19 Delta variant outbreak threatens to deepen wellbeing crisis among exhausted Palestinian health workers See it

Medical Aid for Palestine (MAP):
Emergency situation updates from the West Bank and Gaza See it

Mondoweiss:
WHO fears a fourth COVID-19 wave ‘around the corner’ in the West Bank and Gaza See it

Jewish Voice for Peace Health Advisory Council:
Covid-19 Timeline: July 24-31, 2021 See it

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