February 6, 2008
For Immediate Release
[RAMALLAH] The Palestinian Youth Network (PYN), together with the Spanish Paz Ahora Association, and the International Solidarity Movement (ISM) in Spain will deliver 50,000 euros worth of medicine to United Nations-operated clinics in Gaza’s eight refugee camps.
A delegation in which participates Julio Rodriguez, President of Paz Ahora Association, and Saif Abukeshek, General Coordinator of the Palestinian Youth Network will head to Cairo on Thursday, February 7, where they will meet with United Nations Relief Works Agency (UNRWA) representatives and purchase the medicines identified as most needed by the UNRWA clinics in Gaza. They will try to cross to Gaza, through the Rafah border with Egypt on Saturday, February 9.
“Civil societies around the world must not tolerate the injustice in Palestine, what is happening in Gaza are war crimes and collective punishment. We will continue to support the Palestinian people.” said Julio Rodriguez, President of Paz Ahora Association.
Israel’s hermetic closure on the Gaza Strip is denying 1.5 million Palestinians food, medical supplies and other necessities such as fuel and electricity, slowly killing the people of Gaza. According to the Palestinian International Campaign to End the Siege on Gaza, 90 patients have died since June 2007 as a direct result of Israel’s siege, which denied them access to medical treatment. 107 classes of basic medicines are depleted from Gaza Strip and 97 sorts of medicines are on the verge of depletion. According to the Commissioner-General of UNRWA, “Gaza is on the threshold of becoming the first territory to be intentionally reduced to a state of abject destitution, with the knowledge, acquiescence and–some would say–encouragement of the international community,”
“What is happening in Gaza is the new Nakba (Catastrophe). The silence from the international community is outrageous, but Palestinian youth around the world refuse to be part of this silence. We are organizing to support the survival of our brothers and sisters in Gaza, as we continue our effort to end Israel’s oppression and systematic denial of the basic rights of our people,” said Saif AbuKeshek, General Coordinator of the PYN.
Contact:
For Arabic and English: Saif Abukeshek (Mobile: +34.678.129.102)
For Spanish: Julio Rodriguez (Mobile: +34.629.053.731)
Email: media@pal-youth.org