As the world reacts in panic to the swine flu scare, Palestinians in Gaza are sardonically thanking Israel for the effective quarantine that cuts them off from the rest of the world and makes the besieged strip “the safest place on earth”. That’s what many people in the street believe as they watch Israel registering the third case of swine flu and the ensuing panic.
“We have the Israeli siege, and for once it’s an advantage – nobody comes or leaves here, so we’re safe,” said Akram Ziada, a 20-year-old university student.
Yafa Al Kafarna, 27, from Beit Hanoun says Israel’s measures to restrict the disease will benefit Palestinians.
“They don’t do it because they love us, but at least we’ll be spared, just as we were spared the bird flu,” she said.
Medical experts however brush aside such optimism, saying the virus spreads even when the borders are virtually closed. They say while the Israeli siege may help in preventing the H1N1 virus from spreading, the risks are still there.
“The Gaza Strip is totally clean so far,” said the head of emergency services in Gaza, Dr Moawiya Hassanein. “But viruses need no visa or permission to access Gaza and the Israeli siege will not prevent it from reaching here.”
In reality, Dr Hassanein said, being under siege means the strip will find it even harder to combat the virus once it enters.
“We have very small amounts of regular anti-flu medicinals and vaccines against any other disease, and if the swine flu arrives, we will be facing a horrible scenario,” he said.
Even masks and medical gloves are in short supply here, let alone advanced medical service. “We need the World Health Organisation to provide us with the latest data and the essential needs to fight this epidemic,” Dr Hassanein said.
In contrast, the Palestinian Authority which rules the West Bank says it is “well equipped” to deal with a possible outbreak of swine flu, banking on its experience of pre-empting the avian flu four years ago.
“We’re talking about a potential pandemic, so we are expecting it to hit us anytime,” said Dr As’ad Ramlawi, head of primary healthcare at the Palestinian health ministry. “But we have well-equipped laboratories for testing and our WHO-trained staff have already screened some cases, which proved negative.”
Agreeing with his Gazan counterpart, Dr Ramlawi said there was “absolutely no cause for optimism” in the stip.
“There is some movement from Egypt, there are UN agencies and foreigners working there, so it’s not 100% isolated. Also the high population density there makes it even more risky if swine flu reaches Gaza.”
The Palestinian agriculture ministry is meanwhile keeping the only two Palestinian pig farms – based in Bethlehem – under close observation. All animals there have been placed under quarantine and submitted to tests, proving negative.
Even though experts say swine flu is not transmitted from animals to humans, the director of veterinary services in Bethlehem, Dr Labib Badr, still cautioned about the 1,000-strong wild boars roaming on the hills of the northen West Bank which regularly attack farmers.
“There is no guarantee that they do not have the flu,” he said, adding that the ministry had no control over the areas where the boars lived.
That’s where Palestinian and Israeli authorities are sitting around the same table in their bid to stop the virus from spreading in the region, even though Israel’s ultra-Orthodox deputy health minister, Ya’akov Litzman of the United Torah Judaism coalition party, avoided using the term “swine flu” given that pigs are not kosher in Judaism. Instead, Litzman referred to the disease as “Mexican flu”, offending Mexico’s ambassador to Israel.
On Friday, Israel’s health ministry hosted Egyptian, Jordanian and Palestinian representatives at the WHO’s office in Jerusalem. Dr Ramlawi represented the Palestinian side.
“Ultimately we have common borders and common areas... Jerusalem is common,” he said. “We abide by international health regulations in reporting to neighbouring countries.”
Asked about the prospects of swine flu bringing Palestinian and Israeli officials closer together, Dr Ramlawi said: “I’m a medical person. This disease has nothing to do with politics. I’ve been given the go-ahead from my minister to coordinate with Israelis on swine flu, but I leave it up to politicians to do their job.”
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That’s what many people in the street believe as they watch Israel registering the third case of swine flu and the ensuing panic.
