Skip to content

URGENT APPEAL TO HEALTHCARE LEADERS: PROTECT HEALTHCARE AND CHILDREN IN GAZA—DO NOT BAN UNRWA SUPPORT AMIDST GROWING CRISIS

November 4, 2024
tags: ,

Dr. Omar Bargouti. Colorado Medical Society. Denver, Colorado USA. November 2, 2024

_________________________________

Publishers Note: On Sunday Nov 3 at the Colorado State Capitol, healthcare leaders and organizations issued an urgent appeal to the CDC, NIH, presidents of medical associations, hospital CEOs, and healthcare advocates worldwide to take immediate action to address the escalating healthcare crisis affecting children and communities in Gaza and Lebanon.

_________________________________

Media Contact:

Dr. Mohamed  | (314) 775-7990 | DoctorsAgainstGenocideCO@gmail.com

Rob Prince | (720) 398-7719 | robertjprince@gmail.com

Reema Wahdan | (720) 341-3253 | reema.wahdan15@gmail.com

Photo, video, and interviews with participants are available upon request

URGENT APPEAL TO HEALTHCARE LEADERS: PROTECT HEALTHCARE AND CHILDREN IN GAZA—DO NOT BAN UNRWA SUPPORT AMIDST GROWING CRISIS

On Sunday Nov 3 at the Colorado State Capitol, healthcare leaders and organizations issued an urgent appeal to the CDC, NIH, presidents of medical associations, hospital CEOs, and healthcare advocates worldwide to take immediate action to address the escalating healthcare crisis affecting children and communities in Gaza and Lebanon. With the destruction of critical medical infrastructure and the lives of patients and healthcare professionals at risk, the banning of support for UNRWA (the United Nations Relief and Works Agency) could cripple an already devastated healthcare system and exacerbate the suffering of Palestinian civilians.

As healthcare workers and leaders committed to protecting life and health, we must address the immediate and catastrophic needs of Gaza, where nearly every hospital has been destroyed, healthcare facilities have been reduced to rubble, and access to essential services is severely limited. Medical missions have been blocked, and critical resources such as food, fuel, and medical supplies have been cut off, creating an untenable situation for patients and healthcare providers alike.

Healthcare Leaders Demand Immediate Action:

  1.       End Bombing of Hospitals and Attacks on Healthcare Personnel: We call for an immediate halt to all bombings of hospitals, healthcare facilities, and attacks on aid workers. Healthcare providers and medical facilities must be protected under international law.
  2.       Safeguard Children from Harm: No child should endure the horrors of war. We demand protection for children in Gaza and Lebanon, ensuring their right to life, safety, and peace.
  3.       Implement an Immediate Ceasefire and Stop the Violence: A ceasefire is urgently needed to allow healthcare operations to resume, stabilize healthcare services, and prevent further loss of life.
  4.       Cease Arms Supply and Divest from Entities Complicit in Violence: We urge an embargo on weapons to Israel, as the militarization of healthcare spaces has led to tragic civilian casualties and destruction of critical healthcare services.
  5.       Ensure Humanitarian Access to Gaza: Immediate access for humanitarian and medical aid is essential to deliver lifesaving supplies and services, including antibiotics, trauma care, and surgical tools.
  6.       Expand Trauma-Informed Healthcare Training: Healthcare institutions must equip staff to provide trauma-informed care for patients affected by the consequences of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and systemic oppression.
  7. We call on the Colorado Congressional delegation to sponsor/support HR 9649 – the UNRWA Emergency Restoration Act. We call on the Biden Administration to suspend blocking UNRWA funding asap.

Call to Action for Healthcare Leadership

We urge healthcare leaders to advocate for legislative action to prevent further violence and support initiatives that protect the well-being of children and healthcare workers. Supporting organizations in Gaza and Lebanon will strengthen their capacity to provide essential medical services, rebuild infrastructure, and sustain healthcare education for future providers.

This appeal aligns with the principles of International Humanitarian Law, US Federal Law, and medical ethics. The collective response of healthcare leaders and organizations can save lives and support those working under the harshest conditions to provide care.

The time to act is now. Join us in this critical mission to defend the principles of healthcare, protect vulnerable populations, and preserve the right to medical care and humanitarian support in Gaza.

Contact Information:

Doctors Against Genocide
www.doctorsagainstgenocide.org

Endorsing Organizations:

Advancing Health Equity
American Muslim Health Professionals
Center for Freedom and Justice – Colorado
Disability Justice for Palestine
Doctors Against Genocide
Equal Health
Eyewitnesses Gaza
Healthworkers Alliance for Palestine
Healthcare Workers for Palestine
Health Justice
Jewish Voice For Peace Health Advisory Council
Lemkin Institute for Genocide Prevention and Human Security
Medical Students for Justice in Palestine (MSJP)
Nurses Against Genocide
No Child A Target
Physicians for Humanity
Rocky Mountain Peace and Justice Center

_________________________________

Statement of the Colorado Center for Freedom and Justice – Colorado at the press conference called by Doctors Against Genocide. Denver Colorado. November 3, 2024 read by Diana Deschanel

A bill, the UNRWA Funding Emergency Restoration Act (HR 9649) has been introduced in Congress by Reps. Andre Carson, Jan Schakowsky and Pramila Jayapal. There are 79 co-sponsors, including Denver Congressperson, Diana DeGette; so far, the only one from Colorado. The bill is currently with the House Committee on Foreign Affairs. Many civil society organizations (including mainstream religious denominations, human rights and peace organizations) signed a letter to President Biden calling for the restoration of UNRWA’s funding. If UNRWA funding is not restored, how will other NGO’s be able to fill the void left if the agency were to cease operations?

We, the Center for Freedom and Justice – Colorado call on the state’s Congressional Delegation both Republicans and Democrats, to support and work for the passage of House Resolution 9649 to restore UNRWA funding. Restoration of funding is a vital measure to tackle the worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

With the catastrophic humanitarian crisis in Gaza including famine, a polio outbreak, the destruction of the healthcare system, dislocation of 85% of the population and destruction of housing and infrastructure, President Biden and Congress have halted US support for the United Nations Works and Relief Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA). Of the several other countries who also suspended funding (among them, the EU, UK, Australia, Germany and Japan) all have renewed funding except the United States.

UNRWA was formed by  the UN in 1949 to provide assistance and protection of Palestinian refugees after they were driven from their homes and lands during Israel’s war to establish itself in the Middle East. In Gaza, there are 13,000 UNWRA staff who work to provide food, healthcare, education, relief,  social services and  emergency assistance to 1.7 million registered who are among the residents of Gaza. UNRWA is the backbone of humanitarian operations on the ground in Gaza. In addition, UNWRA’s work is indispensable for the distribution of aid and other relief organizations. Defunding UNRWA also threatens services to Palestinian refugees across the West Bank, in Syria, Lebanon and Jordan, potentially escalating regional instability.  The US must restore funding for the agency’s vital work supporting Palestinians in dire need.

_________________________________

Statement by Dr. Alex Boodrookas, Assistant Professor of History, Metropolitan State University of Denver

UNRWA has provided essential, life-sustaining aid to Palestinian refugees since 1950. This has included employment, food, housing, and education. UNRWA camps are also significant because they were, and are, where Palestinians have preserved their peoplehood in exile. By living together, even away from their homeland, Palestinians have been able to maintain their identity and their culture. The history of UNRWA makes clear that efforts to undermine its mission represent a total disregard for Palestinian life.
Just as revealing is what UNRWA does not do. It does not actively work to end the root causes of Palestinian suffering and statelessness. It does not advocate for a political solution to enforce the right of Palestinians to return to their homes – which is the most fundamental right of all refugees. This is different from the mandate of the UNHCR, the other UN body overseeing refugees – a distinction that underlines the longstanding discrimination faced by Palestinians. UNRWA does not provide Palestinians with legal nationality, which the Israeli state denies them and which is essential for life in the contemporary world. It only – but critically – provides Palestinians with the bare necessities of life.
This context makes clear the significance of these efforts to destroy UNRWA. Banning or defunding this organization based on false or misleadingly exaggerated evidence – as is happening now – can only be understood as a deliberate effort to destroy Palestinians as a people through systemic deprivation. It demonstrates that the United States will no longer support even the most basic efforts to maintain Palestinian life, and will instead subject Palestinians to literal extermination by means of starvation, dehydration, and deprivation of medical care. Article II of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide defines genocide as “acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group.” By this definition, defunding the agency that has kept Palestinians alive for decades can only be seen as direct US complicity in genocide. It is a clear and deliberate effort to eliminate Palestinians as a national group.
For a book-length history of UNRWA, I would suggest Anne Irfan’s Refuge and Resistance, published last year by Columbia University Press.
The views expressed here are my own and do not represent those of my employer
_________________________________

 

from → Gaza, Uncategorized
No comments yet

Leave a comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.