Palestinian patients should not be used as political tools by either the PA or the Israeli government

Following the decision of the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah to stop all financial coverage for the medical treatments of Palestinian patients in Israeli hospitals, and given the policy of the Government of Israel (GOI) to insist on conditioning access to healthcare for Palestinians in Israel in financial coverage from the Palestinian Authority (PA), PHR-Israel, PCHR, Gisha and B'Tselem protest the use of Palestinian patients as political tools by both the PA and the GOI.

In January 2009, after the end of the Israeli military offensive in the Gaza Strip, the PA cancelled financial coverage for all medical care for Palestinians in Israeli hospitals, including coverage for chronically ill Palestinian patients, and those in need of complex care that is not available in other tertiary medical centers in the region.

The result has been that an estimation of hundreds of Palestinian patients who were in the middle of long-term treatment regimes in Israel, including cancer patients in need of chemotherapy, radiotherapy and bone marrow transplantation, found their treatments interrupted with no alternatives.

We, human rights organizations in Israel and Palestine, regard Israel as an Occupying Power who bears overall responsibility for the protection of the right to health of the Palestinian, including free access to health services in the territories it occupies.

In agreeing to act as provider of healthcare services to the Palestinian population, the PA (Ramallah) took upon itself responsibility for that population. However, the ability of the PA in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) to supply appropriate health care services is fundamentally restricted by Israel as an Occupying Power.

The exploitation of the healthcare system in general and of seriously ill patients in particular, for political and financial aims, is a grave violation of the principles of medical ethics and of human rights.

PHR-Israel, PCHR, Gisha and B'Tselem call:

The Government of Israel:
To recognize its ultimate responsibility as an Occupying Power for the healthcare of the population under its control, and to ensure that all residents of the OPT have access to appropriate healthcare regardless of financial coverage.

The Palestinian Authority:
To renew its financial coverage for all Palestinian patients who need to complete their medical treatment in Israel, at least until an appropriate and accessible new health care provider can be found. The PA has the right to decide where it will refer its patients; however, the rights of all these patients to continuity of heath care must not be violated.

Source:B'Tselem

Syria: peace deal possible with Israel

Syria President Bashar al-Assad said in an interview published on Monday that a peace deal with Israel was possible but that normal relations would only be possible if Israel ended its conflict with the Palestinians.

"There will perhaps be an embassy and formalities, but if you want peace then it has to be comprehensive. We give them the choice between comprehensive peace and a peace agreement which does not have any real value on the ground," al-Assad said.

"There is a difference between a peace agreement and peace itself. A peace agreement is a piece of paper you sign. This does not mean trade and normal relations, or borders, or otherwise," he said.

"Our people will not accept that, especially since there are half a million Palestinians in our country whose position remains unresolved. It is impossible under these terms to have peace in the natural sense."

Syria and Israel held indirect talks last year under Turkish mediation. Talks focused on the Golan Heights which Israel captured in a 1967 Middle East war and on Syria's relationship with Iran, Hamas and the Lebanese Hezbollah group.

Source: Ramattan

British MP Galloway donates cars and cash to de facto government in Gaza

Leftist British MP George Galloway personally donated 25,000 pounds and a fleet of vehicles to the de facto government in the Gaza Strip after arriving in an aid convoy.

"We are giving you now 100 vehicles and all of their contents, and we make no apology for what I am about to say. We are giving them to the elected government of Palestine," Galloway said at a press conference in Gaza City, according to AFP.

Galloway dared western states to prosecute him for supporting the Hamas-run government, which is boycotted by the US, EU, and much of the international community.

"I say now to the British and European governments, if you want to take me to court, I promise you there is no jury in all of Britain who will convict me. They will convict you."

Galloway made the announcement at an outdoor presence conference in the presence of several senior Hamas officials, and his words were greeted by shouts of "Allahu Akbar!" (God is Great).

Hamas won the 2006 Palestinian parliamentary elections, and later formed a unity government with its rival, Fatah. The government was shunned by donor states, crippling the aid-dependent Palestinian Authority.

In June 2007 Hamas took full control of the Gaza Strip, defeating security forces loyal to Fatah in bloody street fighting. The Palestinian unity government collapsed and Israel and Egypt imposed a strict closure of the Strip’s border crossings.

Galloway arrived in Gaza on Monday after driving to Gaza from the UK in a convoy called “Viva Palestina,” delivering more than one million pounds of aid and raising awareness about the blockade of Gaza.

Source: Maan News Agency

Wife of Ron Arad: Free all Hamas prisoners for Gilad Shalit

Tami Arad, the wife of missing Israel Air Force navigator , called on the government Tuesday to release all prisoners as demanded by Hamas in exchange for captive soldier Gilad Shalit.

In an interview with Army Radio, Arad said that Israel should free all 450 jailed Palestinians, those who are believed to be the most serious terrorists, in exchange for Shalit.

"If there was an alternative, Gilad would already have been here today," she said. "There has been enough time to wrangle over the price. Let's assume that three years go by and the price tag drops down to 380 murderers. Will we feel better? Who can guarantee that there will be someone [alive] to bring back?" Arad lashed out at recent comments made by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who remarked that public demonstrations for Shalit's release were harming the negotiations.

"It is the easiest thing to say, 'We're taking care of the matter day and night, so sit quietly. All the fuss just raises the price tag.' The price has remained the same. If the parents felt that there was progress they would not have taken the trouble to go to Jerusalem."

"Nothing moves if people sit quietly at home," Arad said. "Time is critical and we must not dawdle."

Meanwhile, Noam Shalit said on Tuesday that President Shimon Peres understood the urgency of freeing his son from his Hamas captors in Gaza.

"The president understands the need and moral significance of releasing an IDF soldier who has been in captivity for three years, and supports releasing Gilad as soon as possible," Shalit said.

He spoke shortly after meeting Peres at his official residence in Jerusalem.

For his part, Peres told Shalit that, "You express the deepest feeling of the nation, which is for the IDF and the responsibility for the fate of every soldier... My heart is with you, as is the heart of the whole nation."

Earlier Tuesday, Shalit's mother Aviva repeated her vow to continue campaigning for her son's release until he returns home.

"After so many days during which we haven't managed to bring back Gilad, we're sitting here and reminding everyone that he is still in captivity," she told Israel Radio.

Aviva Shalit made the comments from a protest tent she had pitched with her husband across from the Prime Minister's Residence in Jerusalem.

"It is our job to urge and fight until Gilad comes back, to remind in case someone has forgotten," she added. The Shalits erected the tent to apply pressure on Olmert to secure Gilad's release before a change in government.

Well-wishers continued to stream into the protest tent on Tuesday, some of whom were dressed up in costumes for the Jewish holiday of Purim. Among the visitors was the family of IDF soldier Nachshon Wachsman, who was kidnapped by Hamas gunmen and killed during a commando rescue mission.

"We suffered this pain for a week and I can't imagine how for almost three years they have undergone this indescribable suffering," said Esther Wachsman from the tent.

"I want to tell Prime Minister Ehud Olmert from this stage that he has about a week until the end of his tenure - [and] he should leave with at least a 'big bang,' and all that is necessary now is to free a missing Israeli soldier."

The Shalits' visitors on Monday included the daughter and the brother of missing Israel Air Force navigator Ron Arad; Karnit Goldwasser, widow of abducted soldier Ehud Goldwasser; Defense Minister Ehud Barak and hundreds of ordinary citizens who stood in line to offer their hands or an embrace.

Aliza Olmert, the prime minister's wife, invited the Shalits to meet with her Tuesday at the Prime Minister's Residence. The couple was also scheduled to meet with President Shimon Peres Tuesday.

Source: Haaretz