Covid-19 cases rise in Palestine, in threat to health care system

Covid-19 cases and positivity rates are rising in the occupied Palestinian territory. Cases in Gaza are leading, and an increasing threat to the health care systems and hospitals is looming on the horizon.

BY JEWISH VOICE FOR PEACE HEALTH ADVISORY COUNCIL

PALESTINIAN YOUTHS TAKE PART IN A CAMPAIGN TO ENCOURAGE PEOPLE TO GET VACCINATED AGAINST COVID-19, IN GAZA CITY ON DECEMBER 2, 2021. PHOTO BY ASHRAF AMRA. (C) APA IMAGES.

Covid-19 timeline in Palestine

As of January 8, 2022  

In the occupied Palestinian territories, Covid-19 cases and positivity rates are rising, mostly from travelers who returned from abroad. Cases in Gaza are leading, and an increasing threat to the health care systems and hospitals is looming on the horizon.  Omicron has been diagnosed across the oPt, confirming community spread.  Palestine received a COVAX shipment containing 453,600 doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine. The Palestinian Center for Human Rights reiterated Israel’s responsibilities to provide medical supplies under the 4th Geneva convention and called on humanitarian organizations to work together to support health care in the occupied territories, particularly in Gaza. 

A little over a third of the population has received two doses of vaccine and vaccination rates continue to rise slowly, at the same time that Israel, which denies any responsibility for vaccinations in the oPt, is distributing boosters widely to its own citizens and  considering a second booster (fourth jab) for its high risk populations.  It should be remembered that case numbers are likely a dramatic undercount and reliable numbers from East Jerusalem are difficult to obtain, a reflection of the decades long de-development of the health care systems, public health structures, and the chronic lack of supplies, medications, and training.

The Palestinian population is somewhat protected from serious disease due to the youthfulness of the residents and their relative isolation, especially in Gaza.  The main source of infection likely continues to be Palestinian workers traveling into Israel for construction and agricultural work as well as Jewish settlers living in illegal settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. The numbers in Israel have skyrocketed, which will undoubtedly have ramifications for the oPt. The disparities in data and treatment between Israel and the oPt is another example of medical apartheid, the dramatic separate but not equal, lack of parity between the (first world) occupier and the (struggling, attacked, repeatedly restricted) occupied. 

CASES IN ISRAEL AND OCCUPIED PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES, SINCE ONSET OF PANDEMIC.
GAZA CASES, BY THE WEEKS, SINCE 2020.

As of January 8, 2022

Israel 1,463,200

West Bank (excluding East Jerusalem) 238,930 (Corona-Covid 19 surveillance system)

East Jerusalem 30,945 (Coronavirus – Covid 19 surveillance system)

for Jerusalem governorate 42,794 (Coronavirus – Covid 19 surveillance system)

Gaza 190,919 (MOH), 190,920 (Coronavirus – Covid 19 surveillance system)

Total 472,490 (Reuters Covid 19 tracker), 471,414 ( 1/7 WHO), 472,644 (Coronavirus – Covid 19 surveillance system)

As of January 1, 2022

Israel 1,383,939

West Bank (excl EJ) 237,538 (Corona-Covid 19 surveillance system)

East Jerusalem 30,376 (Coronavirus – Covid 19 surveillance system)  increased by 20 cases in 2 weeks, ? accuracy

for Jerusalem governorate 42,178 (Coronavirus – Covid 19 surveillance system)

Gaza : 190,427 (MOH) 190, 371 (Coronavirus – Covid 19 surveillance system)

Total 470,303 (Reuters Covid 19 tracker) 469,748 (12/26 WHO) 470,088 (Coronavirus – Covid 19 surveillance system)

As of December 18, 2021

Israel 1,354,001

West Bank 235,101 (excl EJ) (Corona-Covid 19 surveillance system) 246,551  (Mondoweiss)

East Jerusalem 30,356  (Coronavirus – Covid 19 surveillance system) unchanged in 9 weeks, so probably not accurate

for Jerusalem governorate 42,111 (Coronavirus – Covid 19 surveillance system)

Gaza :188,922  (12/16  MOH)  189,113 (Coronavirus – Covid 19 surveillance system)

Total oPt 466,162  (Reuters Covid 19 tracker) 465,094   ( 12/17 WHO) 466,325 (Coronavirus – Covid 19 surveillance system) 465,829 (Mondoweiss) 

COVID-19 Crisis and De-development in Palestine

This will be an online event at the London School of Economics on February 18 4-6 pm

December 23

·       New COVID-19 infections are registered leading to an increase in the number of cases across oPt. Gaza Strip leads by ratio of 42.1% of all active cases, while Ramallah takes the lead in number of cases in the West Bank (15.2%) 

·       Positivity in the oPt is increasing (6.93 in West Bank and 11.3 in Gaza Strip) Rt is currently at 1.03 

·       Palestinian Ministry of Health (MoH) declared on 21 December registration of 6 Omicron cases in the West Bank, no cases registered yet in Gaza. MoH also said that the necessary kits for Omicron tests are now available in the West Bank.

WHO  

December 24

According to the Reuters coronavirus tracker, 44 coronavirus infections per 100,000 people (or 12% of the peak) were reported in the last week in the occupied Palestinian territories. The territories reported 300 new infections on average each day; 467,930 infections and 4,887 deaths have been reported since the onset of the pandemic. So far, at least 3,315,774 doses of vaccine have been administered in the territories, or the equivalent of 35.4% of the population covered with two doses. During the last week reported, an average of about 9,350 doses were given each day; at that rate, it will take an additional 101 days to reach another 10% of the population.

Reuters

December 26

The Palestinian Health Ministry said it had identified the first case of the Omicron variant of coronavirus in the Gaza Strip. The carrier is a Gaza resident who was infected within the coastal territory, ministry official Majdi Dhair told a news conference. “We are headed for a difficult time and violent wave [of infection] with the entry of Omicron into the Gaza Strip,” Dhair said in a press briefing.

Haaretz

December 27
Palestinian Center for Human Rights reports that December 27 is the UN-established International Day of Epidemic Preparedness. This day comes with the outbreak of the new “Omicron” variant.  The world faced this virus with varying capacities due to the difference in health and financial resources for each country.
This pandemic has negatively affected the long-term economic and social development internationally as the global supply chain was broken, affecting the livelihoods of populations, including women and children, and the economy of the poorest and weakest countries.
Over the past 2 years, the hospitals in Palestine worked at a capacity exceeding its capacity within harsh circumstances, including lack of sufficient space, beds, or staff to assist all the patients in critical conditions.

PCHR:
Reiterates that the primary responsibility for providing the Gaza Strip with medical supplies lies with Israel, and it should take all necessary and available preventive measures to combat the spread of infectious diseases and this pandemic, according to Articles 55 and 56 of the 4th Geneva Convention of 1949.
Calls upon humanitarian organizations specialized in the field of health, primarily the World Health Organization to provide aid and assistance to the Gaza Strip’s health sector to ensure its preparedness for the current and any future epidemics, as an integral part of the broader work on the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Calls upon and to endeavor to supply the needed medical equipment to Gaza hospitals to combat the spread of coronavirus.
Calls upon Palestinian NGOs working in the field of health to work closely together and collaborate to increase public awareness of the dangers of epidemics, and to encourage public reception of vaccinations, and to coordinate delivery of accredited vaccines.
International Middle East Media

December 30
The State of Palestine received a COVAX shipment containing 453,600 doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, which were funded by the Governments of Germany and Italy. These vaccine doses were transferred to the Ministry of Health’s vaccine storage facilities in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
Further consignments of COVAX vaccine doses are planned for the State of Palestine to cover 20% of the population – approximately 1 million people. These doses are for both the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, according to the prioritization criteria of the National Deployment and Vaccination Plan.
UNICEF

January 1

For the last week of December, Reuters tracked COVID infections in the occupied Palestinian territories at 12% of peak and falling, with 43 infections per 100,000 population reported. There have been 470,303 infections and 4,931 coronavirus-related deaths reported in oPt since the pandemic began. Approximately 3,315,774 doses of coronavirus vaccine have been administered, which translates to 35.4% of the population (assuming two doses/person.

Reuters

Per Ministry of Health:
PCR tests in the last 24 hours:744

New cases in the last 24 hours:57 

Cumulative confirmed cases:190427

Seriously ill cases:52 

Cases that need medical care:73

Ministry of Health

Detailed information from the Coronavirus/Covid 19 Surveillance System.
Ministry of Health

Minister of Health Mai Alkaila said today that 136 new cases of COVID-19, eight deaths and 314 recoveries were registered in Palestine during the last 24 hours. In her daily report on the coronavirus pandemic, Alkaila said six deaths from COVID-19 were registered in the West Bank, while another two deaths were recorded in Gaza.
A total of 2,745 COVID-19 tests were conducted during the reporting period. In the Gaza Strip, 57 coronavirus tests came out positive, while the West Bank had 79 new cases.
No update was available regarding the situation in occupied Jerusalem.
The Health Minister said that in the West Bank, 113 patients of COVID-19 are currently hospitalized, of whom 57 are in intensive care, including 16 on ventilators.
She pointed out that the recovery rate in Palestine has so far reached 98.2%, while active cases reached 0.8%. Deaths stood at only one percent of total infections.
WAFA

January 2

Palestinian health authorities reported 10 new cases of the COVID-19 omicron variant, bringing the total tally to 77.  In a statement, Health Ministry spokesman Kamal al-Shakhra said the new infections were in the occupied West Bank. The majority of those who tested positive for the virus had returned from abroad, he added.
Palestinian health authorities reported the first three cases of the new variant on Dec. 23.
Anadolu Agency

January 7

In occupied Palestinian territory, including east Jerusalem, from 3 January 2020 to 5:08pm CET, 7 January 2022, there have been 471,414 confirmed cases of COVID-19 with 4,954 deaths, reported to WHO. As of 27 December 2021, a total of 3,383,211 vaccine doses have been administered. The situation is very different from nearby Israel where cases are doubling every few days and hospitals and testing are overwhelmed.

WHO

January 8

Reuters tracked 46 COVID infections per 100,000 residents in oPt over the last week, or 12% of peak. Palestinian territories are reporting 312 new infections on average each day. There have been 472,490 infections and 4,973 coronavirus-related deaths reported in oPt since the pandemic began. At least 3,383,211 doses of vaccine have been administered in oPt so far. Assuming every person needs two doses, that’s enough to cover about 36.1% of the population. During the last week reported, Palestinian territories averaged 9,512 doses each day. At that rate, it will take a further 99 days to administer enough doses for another 10% of the population.

Reuters

Detailed data from each region in the occupied territories
Palestinian Ministry of Health

Minister of Health Mai Alkaila said that 156 new cases of COVID-19, five deaths and 235 recoveries were registered in Palestine during the last 24 hours.
In her daily report on the coronavirus pandemic, Alkaila said two deaths from COVID-19 were registered in the West Bank, while another three deaths were recorded in Gaza.
A total of 3,295 COVID-19 tests were conducted during the reporting period. In the Gaza Strip, 42 coronavirus tests came out positive, while the West Bank had 114 new cases.  No updates were available regarding the situation in occupied East Jerusalem.
The Health Minister said that in the West Bank, 107 patients of COVID-19 are currently hospitalized, of whom 57 are in intensive care, including 23 on ventilators.
She pointed out that the recovery rate in Palestine has so far reached 98.1%, while active cases reached 0.8%. Deaths stood at 1.1% of total infections.
WAFA

A brief history of the pandemic in Palestine, a detailed explanation of the health services available and the deleterious impact of the Israeli occupation and human rights violations.
Go Palestine

An article titled: Electronic Surveillance System for COVID-19 Virus Management in Palestine: An Observational Study, published in the International Journal of Technology Diffusion 12(4):1-11 DOI:10.4018/IJTD.288525 investigated the performance of the electronic surveillance system of COVID 19 and assessed its key attributes. The research results for the overall system performance were good (82.81%).

Research Gate

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