GAZA/JERUSALEM — The sick and dying are rapidly pushing
Gaza's hospitals close to capacity amid a surge in COVID-19 cases in the
impoverished Palestinian territory, health officials said.
اضافة اعلان
Palestinians fear a combination of poverty, medical
shortages, vaccine skepticism, poor COVID-19 data and mass gatherings during
Ramadan could accelerate the increase, which began before the start of the
Muslim holy month on April 13.
Gaza health officials said around 70 percent of intensive
care unit beds were occupied, up from 37 percent at the end of March. There
were 86 deaths over the past six days, an increase of 43 percent over the week
before.
"The hospitals are almost at full capacity. They're not
quite there yet, but severe and critical cases have increased significantly in
the last three weeks, which is a concern," said Dr Ayadil Saparbekov, head
of the
World Health Organization's Health Emergencies Team in the Palestinian Territories.
Gaza's daily positivity rate reached as high as 43 percent
this week, although Saparbekov said that number could be inflated because a
shortage of tests meant they were mostly given to people already showing
symptoms.
Saparbekov also said Gaza does not have the capacity to
identify highly infectious COVID-19 variants when testing, meaning there is
little data on them.
'No truce'
Graveyards are also feeling the strain. In Gaza City,
gravedigger Mohammad al-Haresh told Reuters he had been burying up to 10
COVID-19 victims per day, up from one or two a month ago.
"Wartime was difficult, but the coronavirus has been
much harder for us," said Haresh, who dug graves throughout the 2014
Israel-Gaza war.
"In war, we would dig graves or bury the dead during a
truce or ceasefire. With the coronavirus, there is no truce."
Densely populated and home to 2 million Palestinians, Gaza
has for years had limited access to the outside world because of a blockade led
by Israel and supported by Egypt.
Palestinians say the blockade amounts to collective
punishment and that it has crippled Gaza's economy and medical infrastructure,
with shortages of critical supplies and equipment hampering their ability to
tackle the pandemic.
The situation in Gaza is a stark contrast to Israel, where a
world-beating vaccination rollout has led to more than 53 percent of Israelis
being fully vaccinated.
Ramadan lockdown
Amid growing concern, Hamas will on Thursday begin a week of
nightly curfews, shutting down mosques that host hundreds of worshippers for
Ramadan evening prayers.
But with around 49 percent of Gazans unemployed and
parliamentary elections slated for May 22, Hamas has held back from more drastic
measures that could further damage the economy.
"We may impose additional measures, but we do not
expect at this phase to go into a full lockdown," Hamas spokesman Eyad
Al-Bozom said.
Health officials say the factors that led to the current
spike include the flouting of guidelines for mask-wearing and social distancing
and the opening in February of Gaza's border with Egypt, which may have allowed
in new variants.
Suspicion of vaccines also runs deep. A majority of Gazans -
54.2 percent - said they would not take the vaccine, against 30.5 percent who
said they would and 15.3 percent who were undecided, according to an April 21
survey by the Jerusalem Media and Communications Center.
Just 34,287 people have been vaccinated, even though the
enclave has received 109,600 doses since February donated by Russia, the United
Arab Emirates and the global
COVAX program.
"(The) reluctance of many, including medical staff, to
be vaccinated remains a key concern," the United Nations Office for the
Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said in an April 12 report.
One Palestinian eligible for Gaza's initial round of
vaccines, Qasem Abdul Ghafoor, said he decided to get the jab to protect
himself and his family.
"The situation here is horrific. We took it lightly
before, but I assure you, it should not be taken lightly," he said.
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