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An Israeli Supreme Court decision provides an example, approving restrictions to exit Gaza for treatment, with narrow exceptions, ignored by government officials because the ruling left final authority in their hands, an easy cop-out to permit cruel and unusual punishment to continue, what PHR-IL calls "routine, permanent policy," unethical, immoral, illegal, and deplorable.
Medical training outside Gaza is also denied, Fatah in charge of Ramallah's Health Ministry, collaborating with Israel against its own people, blocking training and treatment of many, persecuting and abusing many more, acting as Israel's enforcer, its duplicitous, self-serving agenda.
In addition, Israel prohibits its own or foreign doctors entering Gaza to provide treatment or professional training. Its authorities rejected two recent requests for a Ramallah Musallam Center team to come, to perform eye surgery and cornea transplants, most patients in need rejected or subjected to long delays.
For the past year, PHR-IL medical delegations were denied entry to Gaza, ones operating in 2008 as part of its Mobile Clinic, providing treatment, surgeries, medications, training, counseling, and referring patients for follow-up treatment in Israeli hospitals.
Repressive Security Services
In 2009, Shin Bet, Israel's internal security service, interrogated over 600 of the thousands of Gazans applying for treatment exit permission. Usually, patients are summoned "after their hospital appointment date(s) passed," causing them to lose out and have to reschedule. In addition, many face "threats and extortion....health (for) ransom," collaborate or be denied, a choice most won't accept.
In other cases, Shin Bet summons patients to Erez Crossing (on the pretext of permission to leave), arresting and detaining them instead - a Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) worker as well, part of a paramedic/ambulance driver team en route to a Ramallah training course, arrested and imprisoned in Israel.
In January 2010, Adalah complained officially to Israel's Attorney General, the Prime Minister's office saying:
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