8 may 2020
Minister of Health, Mai Alkaila, said today that half of the COVID-19 (coronavirus) cases in Palestine have fully recovered, 37 new recoveries were recorded during the past 24 hours.
She said in a press release that 22 recoveries were confirmed in the Jerusalem governorate, seven in Ramallah, six in Hebron, and two in the Gaza Strip.
Alkaila said the total number of recoveries in Palestine now stands at 282, representing 51.5 percent of the 457 coronavirus cases in the country.
She added that all the cases in the quarantine and treatment centers are in a stable health condition, and that no one is in the ICU.
In the meantime, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates said confirmed three more cases of COVID-19 for Palestinian nationals in the United States, bringing up the total number of cases to 717.
The ministry also confirmed two more cases among the Palestinian community in Turkey, bringing total to 15.
She said in a press release that 22 recoveries were confirmed in the Jerusalem governorate, seven in Ramallah, six in Hebron, and two in the Gaza Strip.
Alkaila said the total number of recoveries in Palestine now stands at 282, representing 51.5 percent of the 457 coronavirus cases in the country.
She added that all the cases in the quarantine and treatment centers are in a stable health condition, and that no one is in the ICU.
In the meantime, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates said confirmed three more cases of COVID-19 for Palestinian nationals in the United States, bringing up the total number of cases to 717.
The ministry also confirmed two more cases among the Palestinian community in Turkey, bringing total to 15.
Every early morning, thousands of Palestinian laborers in the occupied West Bank pick up their backpacks and head to the Israeli checkpoints separating the territory and the 1948 land, awaiting for Israeli border officials to allow them into their workplaces inside the Green Line.
During this arduous journey, which sometimes lasts for two or three hours in the way to the work, the laborers are exposed to multiple forms of suffering and humiliation by Israeli soldiers, often forcing them to gather in groups of hundreds before they are okayed in. This has become a daily reality and an odious cost for getting a living.
In recent years, dozens of laborers were either killed by Israeli soldiers at the "checkpoints of humiliation" or died at their workplace due to a work injury, usually resulting from Israeli employers' failure to provide the necessary safety and health requirements.
In many instances, Palestinian laborers in Israel are victimized by the so-called "permit-brokers", who collaborate with Israeli employers to smuggle laborers from the West Bank into Israel through openings in the Israeli Segregation Barrier, in return for an unreasonable fee paid by the workers.
According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, more than 133,000 Palestinian laborers work inside Israel and in the illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, with an average daily wage of about 254 shekels per worker, meaning that these workers earn a total of about $10 million per day.
With the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, Palestinian laborers working in Israel came to the center of attention, given the rapid spread of the pandemic there and the increasing fears for their health and the health of their families. Unfortunately, these fears became true as many laborers and their families have tested positive for the disease.
Coronavirus infection rate among Palestinian laborers and those who came into contact with them reached about 75 percent of the total cases confirmed in Palestine until April 30. This means the laborers have fallen victim to a new pandemic, added to the "occupation" pandemic.
The Israel occupation's government has made false promises to the Palestinian laborers that they could be accommodated in their workplaces inside Israel. However, these promises soon proved false, when the Israeli army mercilessly threw a number of laborers near military checkpoints on suspicion of coronavirus infection, without offering them any medical assistance.
Later, Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh called on all Palestinian laborers to return to their homes in order to maintain their safety and the safety of their families. Meanwhile, the Palestinian government deployed medical and security teams near the Israeli checkpoints, with the task of conducting the necessary medical checks for everyone showing symptoms of coronavirus infection. The teams would also ask laborers returning to the West Bank to undergo a 14-day quarantine and to have no contact with anyone during that period.
The Secretary-General of the Federation of Palestinian Trade Unions (PGFTU), Shaher Saad, said that a number of Palestinian laborers were asked by their Israeli employer to work in dangerous places. He mentioned a case in which laborers working in the illegal Israeli settlement of Karni Shamron were asked to clean up quarantine places for those infected with the virus, without providing them with the minimum safety requirements.
International and even Israeli laws require Israeli employers to treat the Palestinian laborers on an equal footing with their Israeli counterparts, in terms of the financial, social and health rights. However, the occupation government has failed to do so thus far.
In a letter sent to the Director-General of the International Labor Organization, Guy Ryder, Saad called on the ILO to pressure Israel to treat Palestinian workers equally with their Israeli counterparts in the event of a forced absence, like during the recent state of emergency declared to contain the spread of the coronavirus.
He said, “After reviewing the international labor regulations and the Israeli Labor Law, it was found that they all unanimously agree on granting workers all their financial and social rights. However, the Israeli law did not stipulate that breaching its provisions is considered a criminal violation that requires accountability."
According to the Israeli Labor Law, all workers have the right to a full salary in the event of forced absence for a period of 100 days, starting from the first day of the forced absence. This salary is to be paid from the insurance fund, which deducts an average of 11-16 percent of the Palestinian worker's wage in normal times, meaning that regular Palestinian workers have the right to benefit from the savings of this fund.
On the other hand, thousands of Palestinian laborers enter Israel through holes in the Segregation Barrier or through the wastewater tunnels beneath the barrier, or even through the gates of the military checkpoints that the Israeli soldiers leave open sometimes in order to disrupt the Palestinian government's measures to contain the virus.
A Palestinian worker who usually enters Israel through these openings told WAFA that the Israeli occupation authorities have eased their security measures on the Palestinian workers during the pandemic.
The PGFTU has warned about the phenomenon of smuggling Palestinian workers into the Israeli labor market by exploiting their poverty and the need for work. It said that since the outbreak of the pandemic, the occupation authorities have allowed the opening of 300 holes in the Segregation Barrier, for Palestinian workers to enter and exit.
Israeli journalist and author Gideon Levy said: "Suddenly, the Palestinians are allowed to sleep inside Israel, and are no longer time bombs sleeping near our and our children's bedrooms."
"For 20 years, they [the Israeli government] warned us about them, and since 2000 we did not allow them to sleep here, and suddenly this danger ended and they were allowed to sleep," said Levy, as he referred to the false security pretexts that have been promoted by the occupation government over the years.
He pointed out that with the end of the coronavirus pandemic, thousands of Palestinian workers will once again be forced to return to the journey of suffering, having to travel to Israel in the early morning every day and return to their homes in the evening.
During this arduous journey, which sometimes lasts for two or three hours in the way to the work, the laborers are exposed to multiple forms of suffering and humiliation by Israeli soldiers, often forcing them to gather in groups of hundreds before they are okayed in. This has become a daily reality and an odious cost for getting a living.
In recent years, dozens of laborers were either killed by Israeli soldiers at the "checkpoints of humiliation" or died at their workplace due to a work injury, usually resulting from Israeli employers' failure to provide the necessary safety and health requirements.
In many instances, Palestinian laborers in Israel are victimized by the so-called "permit-brokers", who collaborate with Israeli employers to smuggle laborers from the West Bank into Israel through openings in the Israeli Segregation Barrier, in return for an unreasonable fee paid by the workers.
According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, more than 133,000 Palestinian laborers work inside Israel and in the illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, with an average daily wage of about 254 shekels per worker, meaning that these workers earn a total of about $10 million per day.
With the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, Palestinian laborers working in Israel came to the center of attention, given the rapid spread of the pandemic there and the increasing fears for their health and the health of their families. Unfortunately, these fears became true as many laborers and their families have tested positive for the disease.
Coronavirus infection rate among Palestinian laborers and those who came into contact with them reached about 75 percent of the total cases confirmed in Palestine until April 30. This means the laborers have fallen victim to a new pandemic, added to the "occupation" pandemic.
The Israel occupation's government has made false promises to the Palestinian laborers that they could be accommodated in their workplaces inside Israel. However, these promises soon proved false, when the Israeli army mercilessly threw a number of laborers near military checkpoints on suspicion of coronavirus infection, without offering them any medical assistance.
Later, Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh called on all Palestinian laborers to return to their homes in order to maintain their safety and the safety of their families. Meanwhile, the Palestinian government deployed medical and security teams near the Israeli checkpoints, with the task of conducting the necessary medical checks for everyone showing symptoms of coronavirus infection. The teams would also ask laborers returning to the West Bank to undergo a 14-day quarantine and to have no contact with anyone during that period.
The Secretary-General of the Federation of Palestinian Trade Unions (PGFTU), Shaher Saad, said that a number of Palestinian laborers were asked by their Israeli employer to work in dangerous places. He mentioned a case in which laborers working in the illegal Israeli settlement of Karni Shamron were asked to clean up quarantine places for those infected with the virus, without providing them with the minimum safety requirements.
International and even Israeli laws require Israeli employers to treat the Palestinian laborers on an equal footing with their Israeli counterparts, in terms of the financial, social and health rights. However, the occupation government has failed to do so thus far.
In a letter sent to the Director-General of the International Labor Organization, Guy Ryder, Saad called on the ILO to pressure Israel to treat Palestinian workers equally with their Israeli counterparts in the event of a forced absence, like during the recent state of emergency declared to contain the spread of the coronavirus.
He said, “After reviewing the international labor regulations and the Israeli Labor Law, it was found that they all unanimously agree on granting workers all their financial and social rights. However, the Israeli law did not stipulate that breaching its provisions is considered a criminal violation that requires accountability."
According to the Israeli Labor Law, all workers have the right to a full salary in the event of forced absence for a period of 100 days, starting from the first day of the forced absence. This salary is to be paid from the insurance fund, which deducts an average of 11-16 percent of the Palestinian worker's wage in normal times, meaning that regular Palestinian workers have the right to benefit from the savings of this fund.
On the other hand, thousands of Palestinian laborers enter Israel through holes in the Segregation Barrier or through the wastewater tunnels beneath the barrier, or even through the gates of the military checkpoints that the Israeli soldiers leave open sometimes in order to disrupt the Palestinian government's measures to contain the virus.
A Palestinian worker who usually enters Israel through these openings told WAFA that the Israeli occupation authorities have eased their security measures on the Palestinian workers during the pandemic.
The PGFTU has warned about the phenomenon of smuggling Palestinian workers into the Israeli labor market by exploiting their poverty and the need for work. It said that since the outbreak of the pandemic, the occupation authorities have allowed the opening of 300 holes in the Segregation Barrier, for Palestinian workers to enter and exit.
Israeli journalist and author Gideon Levy said: "Suddenly, the Palestinians are allowed to sleep inside Israel, and are no longer time bombs sleeping near our and our children's bedrooms."
"For 20 years, they [the Israeli government] warned us about them, and since 2000 we did not allow them to sleep here, and suddenly this danger ended and they were allowed to sleep," said Levy, as he referred to the false security pretexts that have been promoted by the occupation government over the years.
He pointed out that with the end of the coronavirus pandemic, thousands of Palestinian workers will once again be forced to return to the journey of suffering, having to travel to Israel in the early morning every day and return to their homes in the evening.
7 may 2020
Minister of Health Mai Alkaila said this morning that a new coronavirus case was confirmed in the southern West Bank city of Hebron bringing the total in the West Bank to 355 and in Palestine in general that includes East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza Strip to 547.
She said the new case is for a Palestinian man who contracted the disease while working at an Israeli chicken slaughter house in the Naqab desert in the south of Israel.
Three cases of coronavirus were confirmed in the Gaza Strip yesterday among arrivals from abroad and who were in isolation bringing the total there to 20.
Recoveries in Palestine in general amounted to 222 following reports of 54 patients recovered yesterday in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
Four deaths from coronavirus so far - two in the West Bank and two in East Jerusalem.
She said the new case is for a Palestinian man who contracted the disease while working at an Israeli chicken slaughter house in the Naqab desert in the south of Israel.
Three cases of coronavirus were confirmed in the Gaza Strip yesterday among arrivals from abroad and who were in isolation bringing the total there to 20.
Recoveries in Palestine in general amounted to 222 following reports of 54 patients recovered yesterday in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
Four deaths from coronavirus so far - two in the West Bank and two in East Jerusalem.
6 may 2020
All of a sudden Palestinians can sleep in Israel, Arab health workers are garnering praise and Israelis are experiencing an 'occupation.' Maybe this crisis will show that we are all human beings?
When the coronavirus pandemic first erupted, something happened that initially seemed to be marginal and failed to attract any particular attention: Israel announced that it would permit large numbers of Palestinian laborers from the territories to remain overnight within Israel proper, so they could continue to work at their jobs in the country.
Boom. Massive numbers of Palestinian terrorists would be allowed to sleep overnight in Israel – and in the middle of an epidemic, no less? Where is the Shin Bet security service when you need it? Where are the Israel Police and other security agencies? Who will protect us from these masses of ticking, human time bombs who will be sleeping beneath our children’s bedrooms and our own?
We’ve had a deathly fear of these people for two decades. For 20 years, we’ve been warned about them. Since the second intifada, we haven’t allowed them to remain in Israel overnight. But all of a sudden, during the coronavirus pandemic, the threat is gone, as if it had never been an issue, along with the ban on overnight stays.
All of a sudden, the people doing all the construction in this country are also allowed to sleep here. It’s happened, and the sky hasn’t fallen. But you can still count on Israel, of course: When the pandemic is over, the Palestinians building this country will probably once again have to navigate between all the checkpoints in the middle of the night.
The virus has spread in recent weeks in the area between the River Jordan and the sea, and Israel and the Palestinian Authority have come together under a heavy cloak of fear and distress. This has been the quietest time for years in the region.
Israel’s borders, urban centers and villages, and the refugee camps and cities of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip – all have been calm to an extent not seen here in a long while. An invisible hand has held its fire, its incendiary balloons and rockets, as well as its detentions and assassinations. During the pandemic there has been a pause in hostilities, one that still continues. This will probably pass as if it never was – but maybe not.
At the same time, Arab doctors, nurses, pharmacists, hospital orderlies and other support staff have been on the front lines of the fight against the coronavirus. The mass media, which never noticed them or their people, and which in normal times never took them into consideration, is suddenly according them esteem and respect. All of a sudden, they are human beings, perhaps for the first time in their lives.
Arab epidemiologists or hospital directors may still not be considered expert enough to appear in the media and to speak about their area of expertise, but suddenly there are Arabs on the front page of the Yedioth Ahronoth daily – and they’re not terrorists. Who would have believed it?
Among those lighting the torch during on the eve of Independence Day, the pinnacle of official Zionist ceremonies, there was Arab representation this year – albeit not, of course, for the first time. But this year it was someone who wasn’t a “good Arab” or a collaborator, but a medical professional accorded recognition for his diligence, not his “loyalty.”
There was also another surprising development, the impact of which is still difficult to assess: For the first time in their history, Israelis have begun to feel Palestinian. Not really, but nevertheless, Israelis have now also been subject to lockdowns and curfews, checkpoints and joblessness to a frightful extent. They know that the situation is temporary and that the restrictive measures are justified, but nonetheless, Israelis have gotten a taste of a small occupation.
Will this help them feel a smidgen of identification with Palestinian victims? Will Israelis realize that what they have experienced for two months under deluxe circumstances is what the Palestinians have been experiencing for over 50 years under incredibly abusive and humiliating conditions? It’s doubtful, but maybe they will.
Will a spring of hope bloom fully? It’s not too likely. But the coronavirus has moved us an inch closer toward a one-state solution, which appears to be the only solution left. One small step for man, one very small leap for mankind. A very small, fragile and reversible leap.
The Arabs of Israel have been portrayed for a moment as people like us – facing the same danger, dealing with it as we are, and fortunately not spreading it more than we are, as some people clearly would have hoped. Terrorism in the territories is dead. Dealing with the two sides of the border has become a civilian matter, as in a normal country, with even dribbles of medical assistance here and there.
Gaza has remained imprisoned. West Bank settlers, who don’t pass up a chance to engage in violence, even during an epidemic, have been assaulting and destroying and stealing more than they usually do. And it has not occurred to Israel to make a gesture, such as a prisoner release. But still, there's something in the air that engenders hope.
Will Israelis draw conclusions from these small developments? Have the seeds been planted for a crucial change in outlook – the likes of which has never occurred before – that would lead Israelis to understand that the Palestinians are human beings just like us, with the same dreams and the same rights?
There are no grounds for high expectations. The agents of war and hatred, nationalism and racism, remain just as powerful as ever. But still, two peoples, one epidemic, one state. For a moment, the only country in which two peoples live under three regimes has stopped its crazy pursuit of weapons and blood.
Even if a much greater disaster is needed to bring about change, we may still be consoled by the small disaster that may bring an even smaller, but probably fleeting, change. But we should be grateful for whatever we can get.
When the coronavirus pandemic first erupted, something happened that initially seemed to be marginal and failed to attract any particular attention: Israel announced that it would permit large numbers of Palestinian laborers from the territories to remain overnight within Israel proper, so they could continue to work at their jobs in the country.
Boom. Massive numbers of Palestinian terrorists would be allowed to sleep overnight in Israel – and in the middle of an epidemic, no less? Where is the Shin Bet security service when you need it? Where are the Israel Police and other security agencies? Who will protect us from these masses of ticking, human time bombs who will be sleeping beneath our children’s bedrooms and our own?
We’ve had a deathly fear of these people for two decades. For 20 years, we’ve been warned about them. Since the second intifada, we haven’t allowed them to remain in Israel overnight. But all of a sudden, during the coronavirus pandemic, the threat is gone, as if it had never been an issue, along with the ban on overnight stays.
All of a sudden, the people doing all the construction in this country are also allowed to sleep here. It’s happened, and the sky hasn’t fallen. But you can still count on Israel, of course: When the pandemic is over, the Palestinians building this country will probably once again have to navigate between all the checkpoints in the middle of the night.
The virus has spread in recent weeks in the area between the River Jordan and the sea, and Israel and the Palestinian Authority have come together under a heavy cloak of fear and distress. This has been the quietest time for years in the region.
Israel’s borders, urban centers and villages, and the refugee camps and cities of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip – all have been calm to an extent not seen here in a long while. An invisible hand has held its fire, its incendiary balloons and rockets, as well as its detentions and assassinations. During the pandemic there has been a pause in hostilities, one that still continues. This will probably pass as if it never was – but maybe not.
At the same time, Arab doctors, nurses, pharmacists, hospital orderlies and other support staff have been on the front lines of the fight against the coronavirus. The mass media, which never noticed them or their people, and which in normal times never took them into consideration, is suddenly according them esteem and respect. All of a sudden, they are human beings, perhaps for the first time in their lives.
Arab epidemiologists or hospital directors may still not be considered expert enough to appear in the media and to speak about their area of expertise, but suddenly there are Arabs on the front page of the Yedioth Ahronoth daily – and they’re not terrorists. Who would have believed it?
Among those lighting the torch during on the eve of Independence Day, the pinnacle of official Zionist ceremonies, there was Arab representation this year – albeit not, of course, for the first time. But this year it was someone who wasn’t a “good Arab” or a collaborator, but a medical professional accorded recognition for his diligence, not his “loyalty.”
There was also another surprising development, the impact of which is still difficult to assess: For the first time in their history, Israelis have begun to feel Palestinian. Not really, but nevertheless, Israelis have now also been subject to lockdowns and curfews, checkpoints and joblessness to a frightful extent. They know that the situation is temporary and that the restrictive measures are justified, but nonetheless, Israelis have gotten a taste of a small occupation.
Will this help them feel a smidgen of identification with Palestinian victims? Will Israelis realize that what they have experienced for two months under deluxe circumstances is what the Palestinians have been experiencing for over 50 years under incredibly abusive and humiliating conditions? It’s doubtful, but maybe they will.
Will a spring of hope bloom fully? It’s not too likely. But the coronavirus has moved us an inch closer toward a one-state solution, which appears to be the only solution left. One small step for man, one very small leap for mankind. A very small, fragile and reversible leap.
The Arabs of Israel have been portrayed for a moment as people like us – facing the same danger, dealing with it as we are, and fortunately not spreading it more than we are, as some people clearly would have hoped. Terrorism in the territories is dead. Dealing with the two sides of the border has become a civilian matter, as in a normal country, with even dribbles of medical assistance here and there.
Gaza has remained imprisoned. West Bank settlers, who don’t pass up a chance to engage in violence, even during an epidemic, have been assaulting and destroying and stealing more than they usually do. And it has not occurred to Israel to make a gesture, such as a prisoner release. But still, there's something in the air that engenders hope.
Will Israelis draw conclusions from these small developments? Have the seeds been planted for a crucial change in outlook – the likes of which has never occurred before – that would lead Israelis to understand that the Palestinians are human beings just like us, with the same dreams and the same rights?
There are no grounds for high expectations. The agents of war and hatred, nationalism and racism, remain just as powerful as ever. But still, two peoples, one epidemic, one state. For a moment, the only country in which two peoples live under three regimes has stopped its crazy pursuit of weapons and blood.
Even if a much greater disaster is needed to bring about change, we may still be consoled by the small disaster that may bring an even smaller, but probably fleeting, change. But we should be grateful for whatever we can get.
Five new coronavirus cases were confirmed last night in the West Bank bringing total in Palestine, which includes occupied East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza Strip, to 543.
The five cases were in the town of Samou in the south of the West Bank where six other cases were confirmed in the last 24 hours mainly from interaction with infected workers in Israel.
According to the health ministry’s website, total of cases it has officially recorded was 371, including 354 in West Bank and 17 in the Gaza Strip. Cases in occupied East Jerusalem is believed to be 172.
Four deaths from coronavirus were also recorded, two in the West Bank and two in East Jerusalem.
In addition, 168 have recovered including 127 in the West Bank and Gaza and 41 in East Jerusalem.
The five cases were in the town of Samou in the south of the West Bank where six other cases were confirmed in the last 24 hours mainly from interaction with infected workers in Israel.
According to the health ministry’s website, total of cases it has officially recorded was 371, including 354 in West Bank and 17 in the Gaza Strip. Cases in occupied East Jerusalem is believed to be 172.
Four deaths from coronavirus were also recorded, two in the West Bank and two in East Jerusalem.
In addition, 168 have recovered including 127 in the West Bank and Gaza and 41 in East Jerusalem.
5 may 2020
Palestine confirmed Tuesday afternoon six new coronavirus cases, raising the total number of confirmed cases in the occupied territories to 538.
Health Minister Mai al-Kaileh announced that four Palestinians, identified as residents of As-Samou' town, south of Hebron city, and two others, identified as residents of the East Jerusalem neighborhood of al-Tur, all tested positive for the novel coronavirus.
Among the six new confirmed cases were three children, including a two-year toddler.
She described the health condition of each of the 538 COVID-19 patients as stable, and confirmed that none of them was rushed to the Intensive Care Unit.
She pointed out that the number of cases in quarantine totaled 15,286, while a total of 39,903 cases were released from quarantine.
She noted that 25 COVID-19 patients recovered in Bethlehem Ramallah, Hebron and Jerusalem suburbs, raising the total number of recovered cases to 168.
Meanwhile, the Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Ministry announced that the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths among Palestinians in the diaspora has risen to 1,286 and 70 respectively, while 525 Palestinian patients in the diaspora have recovered so forth.
Health Minister Mai al-Kaileh announced that four Palestinians, identified as residents of As-Samou' town, south of Hebron city, and two others, identified as residents of the East Jerusalem neighborhood of al-Tur, all tested positive for the novel coronavirus.
Among the six new confirmed cases were three children, including a two-year toddler.
She described the health condition of each of the 538 COVID-19 patients as stable, and confirmed that none of them was rushed to the Intensive Care Unit.
She pointed out that the number of cases in quarantine totaled 15,286, while a total of 39,903 cases were released from quarantine.
She noted that 25 COVID-19 patients recovered in Bethlehem Ramallah, Hebron and Jerusalem suburbs, raising the total number of recovered cases to 168.
Meanwhile, the Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Ministry announced that the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases and deaths among Palestinians in the diaspora has risen to 1,286 and 70 respectively, while 525 Palestinian patients in the diaspora have recovered so forth.
