health care

Ramadan decorations at the European Hospital near Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, March 2024. (Ruwaida Kamal Amer)

At overburdened Gaza hospital, Palestinians try to instill Ramadan spirit

Displaced families have decorated Gaza’s European Hospital to mark the holy month, though the war’s devastating impact makes it hard to be festive.

By Ruwaida Kamal Amer March 27, 2024

Palestinians at a temporary tent camp set up for people displaced from their homes, Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, October 19, 2023. (Atia Mohammed/Flash90)

Gaza’s health crisis ‘catastrophic,’ say Palestinian experts

Untreated sewage and overcrowding are leading to the rapid spread of disease, while three-quarters of the Strip’s hospitals have stopped functioning.

By Ibtisam Mahdi December 20, 2023

Palestinians fleeing the war are seen taking refuge at an UNRWA school in the southern Gaza Strip, October 16, 2023. (Atia Mohammed/Flash90)

‘Diseases are spreading rapidly’: In Jabalia camp, thousands shelter in one school

Refusing Israel's orders to evacuate northern Gaza, Palestinians are filling every available space amid growing threats of airstrikes and service collapse.

By Ibrahim Mohammad December 11, 2023

Latest

Hundreds of Israelis donate blood in Jerusalem, on October 9, 2023. (Noam Revkin Fenton/Flash90)

A Palestinian physician in Israel wrestles with her duty in the war

Lina Qasem-Hassan was due to join a medical delegation to Gaza. Then the war broke out, and she found herself treating Israeli survivors.

By Ghousoon Bisharat November 16, 2023

Wounded Palestinians are taken to ambulances after an Israeli airstrike in the city of Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, October 29, 2023. (Abed Rahim Khatib/Flash90)

Gaza’s health system is on the brink of total collapse

Under Israel’s bombardment and intensified siege, over half of the Strip’s hospitals have completely shut down, with others unable to offer vital services.

By Ruwaida Kamal Amer and Ibtisam Mahdi November 8, 2023

Wounded Palestinians from an Israeli airstrike arrive at Al-Shifa hospital, in Gaza City, May 9, 2023. (Atia Mohammed/Flash90)

‘The hospital yard is filled with corpses,’ says Gaza medical director

Israel’s bombardment has pushed Al-Shifa, Gaza's largest hospital, beyond its capacity, with electricity and water cuts endangering patients’ lives.

By Ibtisam Mahdi October 12, 2023

The sun sets over a road in the occupied West Bank. July 22, 2017. (Hadas Parush/Flash90)

The night my daughter was born into the occupation

My wife went into labor amid an escalation of settler violence in the South Hebron Hills. Our first dilemma: how do we get to the hospital safely?

By Ahmed Jundeya September 16, 2021

A man checks the temperature of a customer to identify if he has a fever, in the northern Arab town of Deir al-Asad, April 18, 2020. (Basel Awidat/Flash90)

‘A glimpse into the chaos’: How Israel’s COVID-19 policy neglects Palestinian citizens

Israel's failure to conduct Arabic outreach and include Arab professionals has made it harder to stem the virus' spread in Palestinian towns, experts warn.

By Makbula Nassar September 21, 2020

Illustrative photo of Palestinian women standing in line as they try to pass through Qalandiya checkpoint, which separates the West Bank city of Ramallah from Jerusalem. (Issam Rimawi/Flash90)

Palestinians are facing coronavirus inside a lion’s den

Trapped with a depleted health sector, Palestinians are forced to depend on an occupier that is simultaneously thwarting their ability to care for themselves.

By Mariam Barghouti April 27, 2020

A Palestinian man wounded by an Israeli airstrike arrives at the Nasser hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, on July 14, 2018. (Abed Rahim Khatib/Flash90)

Under siege, medical advice will do little to fight coronavirus in Gaza

Instructions like hand-washing, wearing masks, and consulting doctors online are a dark joke when Israel is trying to send Gaza 'back to the Stone Age.'

By Osama Tanous March 25, 2020

Magen David Adom paramedic with a MDA sign. (Illustrative photo by Oren Ziv/Activestills.org)

Two steps forward, one step back: Israel’s new discriminatory health rights for Palestinians

A new law that extends health insurance rights to non-citizen family members of Israeli citizens discriminates against Palestinians, according to an attorney working on the subject. Israeli ministers signed the new regulations, which according to a Haaretz report on Monday, will primarily benefit Palestinians who are permitted to live in Israel under “family unification” procedures. (The…

By Michael Schaeffer Omer-Man March 25, 2014

I wanted my body back

While we all know that the day will come when our bodies will betray us, the near-certainty entailed in carrying the “wrong” gene renders the betrayal up-close and immediate, transforming one’s body into a disaster zone. And then there’s the comparison that’s always there, awaiting me at the end of the day: no words can…

By Haokets August 10, 2013

Refugee health clinic in south Tel Aviv (Social TV)

WATCH: Refugee health clinic – A step in the right direction?

Aside from emergency services, Israel doesn’t provide asylum seekers with an adequate solution to health and medical problems. This year, however, the Health Ministry established a limited medical clinic designed for the refugee population. While the clinic is a small step in the right direction, the question remains: In a country with a public health…

By Social TV July 25, 2013