Published Friday, November 14, 2014
Israel has banned Norwegian doctor and human rights activist Mads Gilbert from entering the Gaza strip for life, the Norwegian daily The Local reported.
Gilbert, a professor at the University Hospital of North Norway, earned international praise for his philanthropic work in late 2008 during Israel’s Operation Cast Lead, an attack against Gaza that left at least 1,400 dead, including over 800 civilians, 350 of whom were children.
This summer, during Israel’s Operation Protective Edge, a 51-day attack against Gaza that left over 2,180 Palestinians, mostly civilians, dead, and another 111,000 injured, the 67-year-old doctor travelled to Gaza once again and worked as a doctor at al-Shifa Medical Center.
Last month, Gilbert, who has been treating patients in conflict zones for over 30 years, was stopped en route to the Gaza Strip by Israeli officials.
“Israeli soldiers at the Erez border station told me that I’m not allowed to go into Gaza,” the physician was quoted by The Local as saying.
According to the report, the Norwegian Embassy in Tel Aviv took up the incident with the Israeli authorities, who claimed that Gilbert has been banned from entering Gaza for “security reasons.”
“From the Norwegian perspective, we have raised Gilbert's exclusion from Gaza and asked Israel to change their decision. The humanitarian situation in Gaza is still difficult and there is a need for all health workers,” Norway's Secretary of State Bard Glad Pedersen was quoted by the daily as telling local newspaper Verdens Gang.
In Gilbert’s opinion, the ban is in response to his critical comments against Israel.
While volunteering at al-Shifa Hospital in July, Gilbert wrote a letter to the global media describing in graphic detail the unspeakable horrors the Israeli military was carrying out.
Furthermore, in an interview during the Israeli aggression, the doctor said that the “vast majority” of victims were women, children, and men civilians, adding that among the hundreds of patients he had seen at that point, only two had been fighters.
“These numbers are contradictory to everything Israel says,” he reported.
Gilbert also directed a message to US President Barack Obama, writing
“Mr. Obama, do you have a heart? I invite you to spend one night – just one night – with us in al-Shifa.
I am convinced, 100 percent, it would change history. Nobody with a heart could ever walk away from a night in Shifa without being determined to end the slaughter of the Palestinian people.”
(Al-Akhbar)
The views expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the Blog!
No comments:
Post a Comment