Latest news with #Zaqout
Saba Yemen
27-06-2025
- Health
- Saba Yemen
Medical Relief: 17,000 children in Gaza suffer from malnutrition
Gaza – Saba: Director of Medical Relief in the Gaza Strip Bassam Zaqout said on Friday that 17,000 children in the Gaza Strip suffer from malnutrition, and the situation is worsening. In a press statement, Zaqout predicted that a large number of children would die from malnutrition unless serious intervention is made, according to the Palestinian Safa News Agency. He added, "Pressure must be applied on the occupation to allow the entry of baby formula and medicine." Zaqout pointed out that many surgeries are postponed due to a shortage of medical personnel, supplies, and medicines. Whatsapp Telegram Email Print more of (International)
11-06-2025
- Health
These Gazan families came to Quebec for safety. Now, they face life without health coverage
When Nidal Zaqout arrived in Montreal last September from Gaza, he hoped to have a chance to rebuild his life. But safety didn't mean the struggle was over. He soon realized that he and his family would only receive public health coverage for three months after arrival — despite having fled Israel's deadly attacks on Gazans and their homeland. It's a bad feeling, I'm thinking about everything every day, Zaqout said from the living room of his West Island home, where he lives with his parents, two of his sisters, his wife and his two children. I have a big family, big responsibility. Zaqout fears what might happen if someone in his household becomes ill. His father suffers from severe knee pain and his mother from migraines and issues with her back, shoulder and neck. Without Quebec health insurance (RAMQ), going to a hospital is not an option, and the options are scarce and expensive. Not all the people have money, they cannot cover for the health because the people came from Gaza, said Aya, Zaqout's 15-year-old sister. Everything is destroyed, they don't have nothing. They lost everything. As Zaqout and his sister spoke, their mother served dates and coffee. The family gathered close and gently helped one another tell their story in Arabic, French, and English, attentive to every detail. Zaqout expressed gratitude toward the Canadian and Quebec governments and said he was happy and feels safe here, but wishes he and his family could have access to care. I can't live without a medical card, he said. 'I need health care after the war' Zaqout and his family arrived in Canada as temporary residents through the temporary residency program for Gazans (new window) . Their visas are valid for three years and they initially received three months of health coverage through the Interim Federal Health Program (IFHP) — after which the federal government says it's up to the provincial government to take over. But Quebec has faced criticism for failing to do so. More than 70 civil society and health-care groups in the province published an open letter in La Presse (new window) last month calling out the province for not providing health-care coverage to Gazans. Quebec remains the only province refusing to insure their health care, the letter stated. According to federal data, 823 Gazans have made it to Canada between October 2023 and May 2025. These families are among the Palestinians affected after Israel's army killed more than 54,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's health authorities, and displaced 90 per cent of the enclave's population. That same month, a United Nations report (new window) concluded that Israel is deliberately inflicting conditions calculated to bring about the physical destruction of Palestinians as a group, one of the categories of genocidal acts in the Rome Statute and the Genocide Convention. Everything got destroyed, my house, my everything, my business, my jobs, said Zaqout, showing a video of his former home in Gaza — a house with elegant architecture and a palm tree that once stood tall beside it. Enlarge image (new window) Jehan Elsayyed, left, a Gazan living in Sherbrooke, Que., with her husband and her daughter, broke her arm after she slipped on ice. Her health coverage expired shortly after and now, she continues to struggle with her recovery. (Submitted by Jehan Elsayyed) Photo: (Submitted by Jehan Elsayyed) Jehan Elsayyed, another Gazan who has been living in Sherbrooke, Que., since December, is all too familiar with Zaqout's loss. She tears up over videoconference as she recalls witnessing an old man forced to strip by an Israeli soldier and her time living in Gaza with 180 people in a single house without water, food or electricity. When she finally made it to Quebec, she slipped on ice and broke her arm. Her health coverage expired shortly after and now, she continues to suffer. I need health care after the war, she said. I don't want my health situation to be worse. Elsayyed is learning French and said she is trying to integrate into society, grateful for the help she's received from Quebecers. But she finds it very frustrating to live without health insurance. I hope that I can have the right to live as a respected person … and to be equal like other immigrants in Quebec, she said. 'We're making them even more vulnerable,' says doctor In the open letter, the 75 organizations pointed out a double standard after Quebec extended Ukrainians' health-care coverage (new window) — initially set to expire in March last year — until March 2028. The same protection has so far been denied to Palestinian families, including children, fleeing a situation described by many experts as genocide, read the letter. Sophie Zhang, a member of Quebec Doctors Against Genocide, was among the physicians who signed it. Our governments do play a role in what's happening to these Gazan families and the reason why they're here in the first place, said Zhang. So I do think we need to take this responsibility and at least give them basic rights like health care. Khadijé Jizi, a Montreal-based genetic counselor and member of the Health Worker Alliance for Palestine, highlighted that Gazan patients suffer from chronic conditions, gynecological and fertility issues and PTSD. These are all things that didn't disappear when they left Gaza. They're still there and they need medical attention, said Jizi. She also warned that without public coverage, Palestinian children won't be supported for potential developmental issues or language delays. These are vulnerable families, so them leaving a country during a genocide and coming to a whole new country … has its set of challenges, said Jizi. When we add not having access to health care, we're making them even more vulnerable. Conflicting explanations from Quebec and Ottawa In response to CBC's request, Quebec's immigration and health ministries issued a joint statement, declaring that provincial health coverage eligibility depends on documents issued by federal immigration authorities related to Gazans' status. The statement noted that the visa granted under the federal government's temporary public policy for Gazans does not include any specific designation, unlike the Canada-Ukraine Authorization for Emergency Travel. Instead, the province said it is a general document allowing a foreign national to stay in Canada for a limited period, regardless of origin. The provincial ministries said they've asked the federal government to extend coverage under the temporary public policy to avoid a lapse and allow [Gazans] to regularize their status to qualify for the plan, but they say they have yet to receive a response. Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, meanwhile, said public health-care coverage is primarily a provincial/territorial responsibility and that provinces and territories were also encouraged to consider extending access to health. Comparisons between Gaza and other crises, such as in Ukraine, oversimplify complex realities that must be considered, including provincial capacity to support newcomers, the ease of movement out of conflict zones, and the targets set by the 2025–2027 Immigration Levels Plan, the federal ministry wrote in a statement responding to CBC's follow-up questions. Dr. Sophie Zhang is a Montreal-based physician and member of Quebec Doctors Against Genocide. (Submitted by Sophie Zhang) Photo: (Submitted by Sophie Zhang) Zhang described the sentence as shocking and questioned why Ottawa would cite immigration targets in this context. She said she interpreted both governments' statements as attempts to deflect responsibility for an issue that is very easily solvable. Haya Alsakka, an organizer with the Palestinian Youth Movement in Montreal, described the lack of extended health coverage for Gazans as a policy of racism and discrimination, targeting Palestinian and Arab communities. She noted Quebec very quickly provided health coverage to Ukrainians. How are we supposed to believe that it really is an administrative issue that is barring Quebec from giving these families health-care access? asked Alsakka. Zaqout still has loved ones trapped in Gaza, including one of his sisters, along with her husband and child who remain in a tent. He explained that they were living in a different part of the enclave. When they tried to escape, the road was bombarded by the Israeli military. He also added that they didn't receive visas from the federal government. His family cries every day, longing for news and a chance to reunite. As he watches videos of himself treating Palestinian children inside tents in Gaza, he shares his experience as a nurse. Now, in Montreal, he hopes to put that same care to work for Quebecers. I want to succeed in my life. I want to provide all my experience, all my everything to these people here, said Zaqout. I hope to complete my family here and I hope to have a medical card. Hénia Ould-Hammou (new window) · CBC News
Roya News
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Roya News
Since dawn, 'Israeli' strikes kill 19 Palestinians across Gaza
At least 19 Palestinians have been killed in 'Israeli' airstrikes across the Gaza Strip since dawn Monday, according to Palestinian media reports. Al-Aqsa TV reported that six people were killed and an unspecified number injured in 'Israeli' bombing that targeted Khan Younis in southern Gaza. Mohammed Zaqout, director of hospitals in Gaza, said intense 'Israeli' shelling hit several areas in Khan Younis. He warned that medical staff at Nasser Medical Complex fear an imminent raid by 'Israeli' forces. Zaqout added that panic has spread through the hospital following Israeli strikes on its immediate surroundings. Later reports said five more people were killed in an 'Israeli' airstrike near the Falouja market in Jabalia, in the northern part of the strip. On Sunday, 'Israel' escalated its ground operations in Gaza, pushing to expand a buffer zone along the eastern, northern, and southern borders of the enclave. Recent military movements suggest an emerging plan to divide the strip. Analysts believe 'Israel' may now be working to isolate Khan Younis from central Gaza—having already severed it from Rafah by seizing the Morag corridor.
Saba Yemen
16-04-2025
- Health
- Saba Yemen
Medical relief society in Gaza: Strip experiencing stifling crisis for 45 days
Gaza - Saba Bassam Zaqout, director of the Medical Relief Society in the Gaza Strip, on Wednesday confirmed that the Strip has been experiencing a stifling crisis for 45 days, with the Zionist enemy continuing to close all crossings and preventing the entry of any medicines and health supplies into the Strip. Zaqout said in statements on Wednesday that the services that can be provided today will become unavailable tomorrow, as the package of services provided by hospitals and health centers gradually disappears every day due to the shortage of medicines, and the remaining stock is gradually running out by most international organizations operating in this sector. He added that international organizations are issuing appeals to the international community to pressure the Zionist enemy to open the crossings and allow the entry of aid shipments held behind the various crossings into the Gaza Strip so that health services can be gradually restored. He noted that we are now in the most difficult phase we have experienced since the beginning of this aggression in terms of the scarcity of resources available in the Strip. Zaqout stressed that the Gaza Strip's hospitals, which are still operating, receive a large number of injured patients daily, and that preference is given to those who can be saved based on available resources. He noted that, given the scarcity of resources and medicines, many of the injuries admitted to hospitals turn into fatalities, and therefore, the death toll is increasing daily. He explained that meetings are held with the World Health Organization (WHO) on a weekly basis to review the current situation, available services, and the challenges and problems facing the health system in the Gaza Strip, in an attempt to develop maps that facilitate the exchange of services between various health providers. He noted that the WHO always emphasizes the need to open the crossings for the entry of various medical supplies and the exit of patients to complete their treatment abroad. Whatsapp Telegram Email Print
Egypt Independent
13-03-2025
- Health
- Egypt Independent
No medical equipment allowed into Gaza since start of war
The Director-General of Hospitals in the Palestinian Ministry of Health, Mohammed Zaqout, confirmed that Israel has not allowed the entry of any medical equipment, including X-ray machines, into the Gaza Strip since the beginning of the war from October 7, 2023. Zaqout stressed in press statements that Israel has not adhered to the humanitarian protocol despite the ceasefire last January. 'No important medical equipment has been allowed into the Strip, except for some medical supplies and missions whose benefit does not exceed 60 percent,' he explained. During their storming of the Strip's hospitals, Israel's forces have also destroyed all MRI machines and medical tomography devices, Zagout said, which are essential for diagnosis and medical follow-up of patients. Israel's occupying forces have destroyed 34 hospitals out of 38 in Gaza during the war on Gaza and put them out of service through 520 raids targeting the hospitals, according to the Ministry of Health. The World Health Organization (WHO) representative in the Palestinian territories, Rick Peeperkorn, said in a previous statement that the health sector in Gaza suffered losses of about 6.3 billion dollars, with its total needs to reach over seven billion dollars divided between reconstruction costs and service delivery needs. For the 11th day in a row, Israel continues to close crossings, prevent the entry of humanitarian and relief aid into the Strip, and tighten the siege on all supplies, including food and fuel, after the end of the first phase of the ceasefire agreement. This closure comes at a time when the residents of the Gaza Strip are suffering from catastrophic humanitarian conditions due to the shortage of food, medicine, and basic needs during the month of Ramadan. Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
