Palestinians Seeking Medical Care Often Detained at Gaza Crossing
Israel is detaining Palestinian patients seeking to cross the Erez Crossing for hospital care with the aim to turn them into collaborators, Mohammed Suliman reports.
Rafiq Abu Harbeed, 38, was up early in the morning on Jan. 1 as he prepared for the short journey up north toward Erez Crossing. Abu Harbeed, who lives in Beit Hanoun and suffers disc prolapse between the third and fourth lumbar vertebrae, was going to attend a security interview with the Israeli General Security Service (GSS), which is routine practice required by Israel for Palestinians seeking to travel though Erez Crossing. Abu Harbeed was seeking a travel permit to receive medical treatment at Al-Makassed Charitable Society Hospital in East Jerusalem.
At 5:00 pm on the same day, Al-Mezan Center for Human Rights reported that Abu Harbeed’s family received a phone call from the GSS informing them that their son had been detained. He is still in Israeli custody.
Abu Harbeed’s case is one of too many, and gives a glimpse into Israel’s practice of arresting Palestinians seeking travel via Erez Crossing, particularly patients and their escorts referred by the Palestinian Ministry of Health (MoH) to receive medical treatment in Israeli, West Bank and East Jerusalem hospitals.
According to Al-Mezan, in 2012, six Palestinians, including four patients, were arrested at Erez Crossing by Israeli authorities while en route to Israel and the West Bank. Two more men have been arrested thus far in 2013.
