Right to health and democratic space under pressure in Palestine

Following a new Israeli attack against the Palestinian organisation Health Work Committees, several Belgian organisations have condemned the delegitimisation and criminalisation of humanitarian work and the defence of fundamental human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories, and have called on the Belgian government to take action.

On Monday, 8 March, at 3:40 a.m., the Israeli army raided the offices of the Palestinian organisation Health Work Committees (HWC), one of the largest healthcare providers in the West Bank. At the same time, the home of its financial collaborator, Tayseer Abu Sharbak, was stormed. Several personal items were confiscated and he was taken away in a military jeep to an unknown destination. A few days later, he was finally allowed to see a lawyer, but his fate remains uncertain.

Several decades of colonisation and annexation policies, military occupation and apartheid have undermined the democratic space in which Palestinian civil society organisations (CSOs) operate. It is unacceptable that organisations such as HWC are the target of such relentless persecution by the occupying authorities. This raid is yet another in a series of repeated attempts to delegitimise and criminalise their humanitarian work and defence of fundamental human rights in the occupied Palestinian territory.

During the raid on HWC's offices, soldiers broke down the front door, destroyed computers, confiscated more than ten hard drives and three laptops. They also seized numerous documents.

Health Work Committees denounces: «This attack on our organisation comes at a time when Palestine is facing a rapid rise in the number of COVID-19 patients. Several Palestinian cities have been under total curfew for several days, and HWC is on the front line to ensure quality and accessible health services for all, despite restrictions on movement. We are doing our utmost to avoid having to slow down our provision of health services to the most vulnerable people and will continue to make our voice heard so that the Palestinian population's right to health is respected.».

HWC is a partner of the NGO Viva Salud and occasionally participates in the advocacy work of the CNCD-11.11.11 and 11.11.11 umbrella organisations.

The signatories of this statement call on the Belgian government to:

Continue to actively support the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people to realise their right to self-determination.
Actively support the International Criminal Court so that it can conduct its investigation into crimes committed in the Occupied Palestinian Territory independently and without external pressure, particularly with regard to cases of systematic violations by Israel against Palestinian health facilities and health workers.

Signatories