ACCESS TO MEDICAL TREATMENT FOR PALESTINIAN CHILDREN

That this House expresses grave concern about the cases of Palestinian children from Gaza being unable to receive urgent life-saving medical care; notes that this is due to Israeli authorities refusing permission for the mothers or grandmothers of such children to leave Gaza to accompany them on `security grounds'; further notes the Amnesty International report of 16th October 2008 stating that six children under the age of six, one of whom was only five months old, suffering from serious heart conditions, were not able to attend surgery with a team of British heart specialists at Makassad Hospital in East Jerusalem in early October 2008 for such reasons; further notes that Gaza lacks the specialised medical staff and equipment to treat certain illnesses, including cardiovascular diseases and cancer; further expresses concern that, by not allowing a female relative to accompany these children, Israel is effectively denying them access to life-saving treatment; urgently calls on the Government to appeal to the Israeli government to allow these female relatives to accompany the children out of Gaza to receive treatment from a visiting team of Italian heart specialists in Makassad Hospital during the week of 6th November; urges the Government to further call on Israel to meet its obligations under international law to ensure that all Palestinians in occupied territory, both Gaza and the West Bank, obtain access to effective and appropriate medical treatment; and further notes that Israel's refusal to allow patients to leave Gaza for medical treatment that is not available in Gaza constitutes collective punishment.