Gaza medicine shortages 'worst since siege began'

A spokesman for the ministry of health in the Gaza Strip said Saturday the enclave was facing the worst shortage of medications since the enclave was first placed under blockade. Ashraf al-Qudra told Ma’an of "a real problem" in Nasr Children's Hospital due to the lack of special injections for patients with immune disorders, and in all medical centers for children and adults. Al-Qudra pointed out that authorities lack 253 kinds of medicine and 211 medical supplies, and he condemned the Arab world's "silence toward Israeli violations against the Palestinian people." Even when the borders are open for patients, it does not always resolve their plight because al-Makassed hospital in Jerusalem is itself facing shortages. "We have transferred a case to Makassed ... to get the drug against the lack of immunity, but we can't find it there, either,” he said. The hospital is facing a major budget shortfall as the Palestinian Authority failed to pay for cases, and it has had to borrow tens of millions of dollars, Mukassed officials told Israel's Media Line news service in May. Al-Qudra called on the World Health Organization and Red Crescent to intervene on behalf of the health sector. He added that the 12-hour blackouts were not helping matters. The Hamas-run health ministry is frequently at odds with its counterpart in the Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority, which pays for the import of medications into Gaza. The ministry has accused the PA in the past of deliberately delaying shipments. The PA says it spends more than half of its annual budget on Gaza, including in the medical sector.