UK Dept of Health must condemn Israel's war crimes that limit access to medical care

The UK’s Department of Health and Social Care must retract its statement of solidarity with the people of Israel and remove the Israeli flag from its office building, healthcare workers have said.

The over 2,000 health professionals who signed an open letter said they “demand that the DHSC recognises [and condemns] the inexcusable war crimes committed by the state of Israel against Palestinian civilians in Gaza.”

Israel’s total siege of the Strip, they added, and cutting off access to clean water, food and energy “made it harder for hospitals to treat victims of the bombing campaign by the Israeli government.”

“This siege has meant that life preserving and life saving care are unable to be provided,” it continued, while demanding “that efforts are made to support Palestinian health services through donations, sharing of resources and equipments.”

As the NHS struggles to cope with record waiting lists as a result of the pandemic, the letter says, “the Department of Health and Social Care should be well aware of the impact crisis can have on patient care and outcomes.”

“Despite this they have shown little to no care for the lives and humanity of patients in Gaza who not only have been victims of attacks but then have had their access to quality health care limited.”

READ: Displaced families return to north Gaza as there is no safe haven from Israel’s bombs