Palestinian Prime Minister, Mohammad Shtayyeh, on Tuesday, called on the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), to apply all necessary international standards of safety and protection on the 5,000 Palestinian prisoners, held in Israeli jails.
Shtayyeh’s call came in response to the current Coronavirus crisis that has plagued many countries, including the Israeli occupation state and the occupied Palestinian territories.
The PM urged the ICRC to apply all those standards, during a meeting with head of the ICRC’s mission in Jerusalem, Daniela Dophelar, at his Ramallah-based office, on Tuesday.
“I call upon the ICRC to take on a greater role in the occupied city of East Jerusalem, which is neglected by the Israeli occupation authorities, preventing the Palestinian Authority (PA) from providing all necessary services, including medical care, for our Palestinian population there. They detain our crews of volunteers, who provide humanitarian assistance for Palestinian residents of East Jerusalem,” Shtayyeh said.
The Premier made clear that in light of such an emergency situation, all the necessary preventive measures should be taken to fight the spread of the Coronavirus. The ICRC must take on greater responsibility, especially in areas beyond the Palestinian Authority’s jurisdiction, such as East Jerusalem and Israeli cities and towns, where there are tens of thousands of Palestinian workers.
Remarks by the Palestinian PM comes amidst reports of four Palestinian prisoners who tested positive for Coronavirus in Megiddo prison of, one of Israel’s largest detention facilities for Palestinians.