Can Palestinians survive PA's disengagement from Israel?

The Palestinian government “will work on gradually disengaging from Israel,” Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh asserted May 20 in response to the US announcement of an economic conference to be held in Bahrain as part of President Donald Trump’s “deal of the century.” Palestinian businessmen were among those invited to attend the conference.

Shtayyeh also said that the Palestinian Authority (PA) had decided, as its first step toward disengagement, to freeze issuing referrals to Palestinians seeking medical care in Israel. The second step will be the launch of a program to encourage local production in manufacturing and agriculture to halt reliance on importing products through and from Israel.

A source in Israel’s Civil Administration who spoke with Al-Monitor on the condition of anonymity, confirmed that the Palestinian Health Ministry has almost completely ceased issuing vouchers to Palestinian patients to cover life-saving medical treatment in Israeli hospitals. “This is a game of false pride and honor,” the source said. “They are endangering the lives of the patients, mainly children and babies. Their main point is to prove to Israel and the Americans that the PA doesn't need them anymore.”

The PA does not have many alternatives to the treatments provided by Israel for cancer patients or people suffering from genetic diseases, a relatively prevalent condition among local Palestinians due to marriage among close relatives. Palestinian patients who cannot be treated in the Makassed Islamic Charitable Society Hospital in East Jerusalem are sent to hospitals in Jordan, while patients in Gaza are referred to hospitals in Cairo. For cancer patients, one big problem is that the treatments provided by these hospitals are inferior to those provided by Israeli hospitals specializing in oncological diseases. In addition, there are also logistical difficulties in finding donors for bone marrow transplants for patients suffering from genetic diseases or cancer.