The Latest:
- 293,137 Palestinians tested positive for COVID-19; 258,046 recoveries; 3,076 deaths
- Of Palestinian who tested positive, 185,415 live in the West Bank, 78,980 live in the Gaza Strip, and 28,742 live in East Jerusalem
- 835,674 Israelis tested positive for COVID-19; 825,195 recoveries; 6,280 deaths
For the second week in a row, confirmed cases of COVID-19 doubled in Gaza as the third wave continues to strap Palestinian medical systems. In the West Bank, for a fifth week in a row hospitals are overwhelmed, with ICUs at 100% capacity, according to the WHO’s latest situation report.
The big picture: In Gaza, hospital and ICU capacity is still around 36%, but that number could rapidly change if new lockdown measures do not slow the spread. Over the last week, the coastal enclave experienced an 86% jump in new COVID-19 cases and a 44% increase in ICU patients. Meaning, the third wave has already pushed the West Bank’s medical system to its limit, and Gaza could shortly follow.
Lockdowns were due to expire in both the West Bank and Gaza but were extended for another month. New stricter measures rolled out this week in the West Bank, with trips in cars prohibited from last Wednesday to this coming Sunday. And, an overnight curfew is in place from 9:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. until the beginning of May. Schools and universities were shut down again. Businesses will be allowed to remain open, so shops and restaurants haven’t been shut down, but they can only operate at 30% capacity.
From Good Friday to ‘Sad Friday’
Christian worshipers, monks, and friars walk in procession around the Edicule, traditionally believed to be the burial site of Jesus, during a mass to commemorate the Washing of the Feet on Holy Thursday, at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, on April 1, 2021. (Photo: Jamal Awad/APA Images)
At the start of the week, Palestinian Christians observed their second Easter under lockdown. We published a somber sermon from Archbishop of Sebastia Atallah Hanna, the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem:
“We pray to God that the whole world will come together to fight the pandemic and then continue to be united in facing all the other pandemics in our universe—especially racism, hatred, injustice, occupation, oppression, and degradation of human dignity.”
Palestinian Christians attend an Easter vigil mass at the Deir Latin church in Gaza City, on April 4, 2021. (Photo: Mahmoud Ajjour/APA Images)
Reuters reported a look back over the last year from “Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus,” which “was the first area in the occupied Palestinian Territories to be forced into lockdown just before Easter last year, closing the Church of the Nativity.”
One “despondent Apostolic Administrator,” the Archbishop Pierbattista Pizzaballa, told the wire service “a year ago on Good Friday, known to Palestinian Christians as Sad Friday,” that “Death is stalking a lot all over the world.”
U.S. restores funding to Palestinians
Palestinian girls play basketball at Champions Club, on International Sport for Development and Peace Day in Gaza City, on April 6, 2021. Around 50% of the population in Gaza receives food aid from UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees. (Photo: Mohammed Salem/ APA Images)
This week the Biden administration restored funding to Palestinians, to the tune of $75 million in assistance, reversing the Trump administration’s 2018 decision to abruptly cut funding. Some of the money will go toward the Palestinian COVID-19 effort, specifically building up the struggling hospital network.
On Wednesday USAID Acting Administrator Gloria Steele said:
“USAID assistance will fund a variety of projects to make safe drinking water more accessible, help Palestinian small businesses get back to work after the COVID-19 crisis, target the hard-hit tourism industry, provide vocational and life skills training for young Palestinians, address the basic needs of vulnerable populations, particularly in Gaza, and support Palestinian civil society’s ability to affect change. A portion of funding will support the East Jerusalem Hospital Network as it continues to provide necessary and life-saving treatments to Palestinians.”
Yumna Patel reported the political fallout that followed. Israel’s new Ambassador to the UN Gilad Erdan opposed the move, calling Palestinian refugees who receive humanitarian assistance from the UN, “so-called ‘refugees.’”
Patel reports: “UNRWA provides essential services like healthcare and education to some 5.7 million Palestinian refugees inside Palestine and across the Middle East, though those services and others have been slashed due to lack of funding over the years.”
That’s it for this week. Stay safe!
