Israeli public health system won't treat injured Hamas militants: Health minister

By Zehra Nur Duz

Israeli Health Minister Moshe Arbel on late Wednesday told Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he had ordered a halt to the treatment of Hamas militants in public hospitals, local media reported.

In a letter to Netanyahu, Arbel said that the issue of treating the Hamas militants in the public hospitals has caused “tremendous difficulty” on the health system, the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper reported.

In these difficult times, the health care system should focus fully on treating victims, Israeli soldiers and “preparedness for what is to come,” the letter read.

The task of securing and treating the injured Palestinian militants within the public health system “significantly harms these efforts,” he said. “And therefore, under my guidance, the public health system will not treat them."

Arbel added that the handling of the matter should be entrusted to the Israeli army or Israel Prison Service, and the Health Ministry is “ready and willing” to help these people as much as necessary.

Arbel said he asked Netanyahu for “immediate guidance” to implement this instruction.

In a dramatic escalation of Mideast tensions, Israeli forces have launched a sustained and forceful military campaign against the Gaza Strip, a response to a military offensive by the Palestinian group Hamas in Israeli territories.

The conflict began when Hamas initiated Operation Al-Aqsa Flood against Israel, a multi-pronged surprise attack including a barrage of rocket launches and infiltrations into Israel via land, sea, and air, which Hamas said was in retaliation for the storming of the Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem and Israeli settlers’ growing violence against Palestinians.

In response to Hamas' actions, the Israeli military launched Operation Swords of Iron against Hamas targets within the Gaza Strip.

Israel's response has extended into cutting water and electricity supplies to Gaza, further worsening the living conditions in an area that has reeled under a crippling siege since 2007.