Palestinian factions blame Israel for coronavirus 'catastrophe' in Gaza

They warned that if the ‘siege is not lifted and all medical supplies are not brought into the Gaza Strip to confront this pandemic, the Palestinian people will not suffer alone’

By KHALED ABU TOAMEH
Palestinians, wearing masks as a preventive measure against the coronavirus disease, work in a bakery in Gaza City (photo credit: REUTERS/MOHAMMED SALEM)
Palestinians, wearing masks as a preventive measure against the coronavirus disease, work in a bakery in Gaza City
(photo credit: REUTERS/MOHAMMED SALEM)
Israel is responsible for the lives of Palestinians in light of the coronavirus outbreak in the Gaza Strip, Palestinian factions said Thursday.
They said they would not remain indifferent to the “suffocating siege imposed on the Gaza Strip, especially after the outbreak of the coronavirus.”
If the “siege is not lifted and all medical supplies are not brought into the Gaza Strip to confront this pandemic, the Palestinian people will not suffer alone,” they warned in a statement.
If Israel fails to comply with their demands, it will pay a price that would bring relief to the Palestinians and be recorded by history, the factions said.
The threat came as Qatari envoy Mohammed al-Emadi headed to Israel after holding talks in the Gaza Strip with Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar on ways of ending the current tensions with Israel.
Over the past two weeks, Palestinians have fired hundreds of explosives-laden and incendiary balloons from the Gaza Strip into Israel.
The threat also came as Hamas extended the curfew imposed on the Gaza Strip on Monday night by another 72 hours. The curfew was announced after the discovery of four patients who tested positive for the coronavirus – the first cases recorded among the general population and outside the quarantine facilities near the border between the Gaza Strip and Egypt.
On Thursday, the total number of patients infected with the coronavirus in the Gaza Strip rose to 129, of whom 72 have recovered, while 54 cases remain active. They include 17 cases among the general population and 37 who were diagnosed with the disease upon their return to the Gaza Strip from abroad. Three patients have died from the disease since the outbreak of the pandemic in March.
Hamas officials did not reveal details about the Qatari envoy’s visit to the Gaza Strip. Sources close to Hamas, however, said Emadi was expected to return to the Gaza Strip very soon with Israel’s response to the demands. They include lifting the ban on the entry of goods, increasing fuel supplies for the power plant, expanding the fishing zone, facilitating the entry of medical equipment and medicine and allowing more workers and merchants to enter Israel.
It was not clear by mid-Thursday whether Qatar had agreed to continue its cash payments to tens of thousands of Palestinian families in the Gaza Strip. According to the sources, Hamas has asked Qatar to increase the cash grants from $20 million to $40m.
The situation in the Gaza Strip was “very dangerous” because of the discovery of the new coronavirus cases there, a Hamas official said. Israel’s response to Hamas’s demands will determine “whether we are headed toward escalation or calm,” he said.
“The balloon attacks [on Israel] won’t stop unless the siege on the Gaza Strip is lifted,” the Hamas official said. “Israel bears full responsibility for the humanitarian and health crisis in the Gaza Strip. We are waiting to hear from Emadi.”
The Gaza-based factions called on Arab and international human-rights organizations to support the Palestinians in preventing the spread of the coronavirus in the Hamas-ruled coastal enclave.
Israel would bear responsibility for the deteriorating health conditions in the Gaza Strip, said Ismail Haniyeh, a senior Hamas political leader. Hamas was holding contacts with many parties, including Egypt, Qatar, Turkey and the United Nations, in the wake of the spike in the number of coronavirus cases, he said.
Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) warned of a “catastrophe” in the Gaza Strip after the discovery of the new coronavirus cases and said Israel was responsible because of the ongoing blockade.
The continued restrictions on the Gaza Strip would spark a “massive popular response,” said Yusef Hassaineh, a senior PIJ official. The Palestinians “won’t allow the occupation to commit more crimes and will thwart all conspiracies,” he said.
Hassaineh also urged the Palestinian Authority to lift the economic sanctions it imposed on the Gaza Strip two years ago.


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