World Health Organization Calls on Israel to Lift Palestinian Blockade - No Medicine, Food, Fuel Getting Through - Humanitarian Crisis

[link to stopthesiegeongaza.blogspot.com]

The World Health Organisation on Wednesday passed a resolution demanding that Israel lift its blockade of the occupied Palestinian territories, which is blamed for a shortage of medicines.

WHO members attending the organisation's annual assembly here urged Israel to "reverse its policies and measures that have led to the prevailing dire health conditions and severe food and fuel shortages in the Gaza Strip".

The resolution was supported by 97 votes, while nine states rejected it and 11 abstained.

The European Union distanced itself from the resolution, as it views it as unbalanced. However, the EU also expressed its concerns on the "disastrous" sanitary conditions in Gaza.

Proposed by several Muslim states, including Syria, Saudi Arabia and Indonesia, the resolution expressed its concern at the "deterioration of economic and health conditions as well as the humanitarian crisis".

It also deplored incidents involving what it called a lack of respect and protection for Palestinian ambulances and medical personnel by the Israeli army.

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