WHO Warns of Worsening Health Crisis in Occupied West Bank

Geneva, The World Health Organization (WHO) has issued a warning about the worsening health crisis in the occupied West Bank, citing attacks on medical facilities and stringent restrictions imposed by Israeli forces. In a press release, the WHO called for immediate and effective protection of civilians and the health system in the West Bank, expressing regret over the strain on health institutions due to funding shortages. The organization highlighted that the severe financial crisis, exacerbated by Israel withholding Palestinian tax revenues since October 7, has resulted in healthcare workers receiving only half of their salaries for nearly a year, and 45 percent of essential medications are out of stock. The WHO reported 480 attacks on health facilities or ambulances in the occupied West Bank between Oct. 7, 2023, and May 28, 2024, which resulted in 16 deaths and 95 injuries. Access to healthcare is further complicated by checkpoint closures, increasing insecurity, and the sealing off of entire villages , WHO explained. The Israeli government is withholding over 6 billion shekels in clearance revenues, which are taxes collected by the Israeli finance ministry on imported goods and transferred to the Palestinian finance ministry monthly. Since the onset of the Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip on Oct. 7, 2023, 546 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank, including occupied Jerusalem, among them 133 children, and more than 5,200 others have been injured. Source: Qatar News Agency