Asmaa Abu Jarbou, 12, lying in the Al-Rantisi Specialized Hospital for Children, shedding tears, complains that the Israeli occupation prevented her from traveling from the Gaza Strip for treatment.
Abu Jarbou, from Al-Nuseirat camp in the central Gaza Strip, has been ill for 3 years with lung cancer. All treatment attempts she had in Gaza did not help her, due to the lack of medication and the necessary equipment.
She reports to Safa, "My life is in danger, because the medicine I need is not available in Gaza, and I cannot travel because of the occupation's closure of the Beit Hanoun / Erez checkpoint."
Asmaa affirms her right to travel and be treated and to live in peace just as all the children around the world live.
Moreover, she points out that treatment and travel are the simplest rights of any human being in the world.
Abu Jarbou calls on the international community and humanitarian institutions to help her travel and save her life, and the lives of all patients in Gaza.
According to the Ministry of Health, the number of cancer patients has reached 8,644 during the past five years, indicating that it had recorded more than 3,000 deaths during these years.
For his part, Muhammad Abu Nada, a doctor at Al-Rantisi Hospital Rantisi says that the lack of medicines for cancer patients is a dangerous indicator.
Abu Nada points out that between 50 and 60 percent of cancer patients in Gaza need to travel for treatment in specialized centers outside the Gaza Strip to obtain radiotherapy, nuclear scans, and chemotherapy, which are not available in Gaza hospitals.
He stresses that the Israeli measures and restrictions prevented about 60% of patients from reaching specialized hospitals.
He calls on the international community to pressure the occupation authorities to lift their restrictions on the movement of patients and facilitate their access to specialized hospitals outside the Gaza Strip.
He also urged all concerned parties to immediately intervene to provide specialized medicines for cancer patients and to enhance opportunities for urgent treatment.
