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Israeli Border Must Stay Open to Aid, Says Caritas
27-Jun-07
Zenit
Caritas Internationalis is emphasizing the need for an open Israeli border to meet the need for humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip.
Caritas resumed medical operations on Saturday in the Gaza Strip, after being suspended for a week because of the fighting between the Hamas and Fatah parties which left Hamas in control of the area.
Meanwhile, Palestinians in Gaza are surviving thanks to fuel, food and medicine imported through Israel. Caritas is urging all parties, and particularly the Israeli government that controls the border, to ensure that these supplies continue to get through.
Caritas staff warned that while they have supplies for two months, the area in general does not have enough in storage to survive a long border closure.
Paying the cost
Caritas Internationalis' secretary-general, Lesley-Anne Knight, said: "The Palestinians in Gaza must not become a forgotten people, cut off from the outside world. Whatever the political or military situation in Gaza, innocent Palestinian civilians must not pay the cost.
"It is against international humanitarian law to prevent people from receiving humanitarian aid. Caritas wants to see a humanitarian corridor to Gaza so that medical and food supplies can reach the needy."
The director of the Caritas projects in Gaza, Bandalay Al Sayegh, characterized the situation as "very unstable."
He said: "Generally speaking, people are afraid. They are staying at home. While our medical center is open, we have seen very few patients coming to the clinic. People are staying home and are only leaving their homes if an urgent need is present.
"Gaza's hospitals faced huge demands during this period of fighting. There are over 500 patients with gunshot wounds and there is a lack of specialized surgeons to treat these injuries. Our hospitals need fuel supplies to continue treating patients. If these are cut, this will cause the death of many people."
The Caritas Confederation is working through Caritas Jerusalem. They operate a medical center and a mobile medical clinic that serves six specific areas in Gaza, providing health care to 20,000 people.
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