A coalition of human rights and legal aid organizations appealed on Thursday to the High Court of Justice, urging it to allow Gazans access to hospitals in the West Bank and east Jerusalem for life-saving medical treatments.
The petition argues that Gaza’s medical system has “completely collapsed.” According to the organizations, 16,500 people – many of them children, elderly individuals, and women – face immediate life-threatening danger due to the absence of essential treatments such as chemotherapy, emergency care, oncological surgeries, and pediatric services.
Only three hospitals remain fully operational, while two-thirds of the 647 medical facilities functioning before the war are now out of service, the petitioners show. They further emphasize that Israel holds full authority over medical evacuations, as it effectively controls Gaza’s land crossings.
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Since the closure of the Rafah crossing last May, the once-primary route for evacuations to third-party states – such as Egypt, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates – has dwindled to a level that “does not meet the needs of the population.” Only 2,933 Gazans have passed through Rafah since May, with numbers sharply declining in recent months as thousands wait.
The petition was filed by five Israeli human rights organizations: Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI), Gisha, HaMoked: Center for the Defence of the Individual, Adalah – The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, and the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI).
For Gaza’s 2.1 million residents, the petition notes, there are currently just 1,952 hospital beds available.
Overcrowded living conditions – families packed into tents with poor sanitation – exacerbate chronic illnesses and fuel the spread of disease. Dr. Jeffrey Goldhagen, president of the International Society for Social Pediatrics and Child Health, called the situation “preventable deaths, nothing less.”
Additionally, the petition shows roughly 11,000 cancer patients are now without medication or essential equipment, with 75% of chemotherapy drugs unavailable. Dr. Keren Lebanon, an oncology specialist volunteering with PHRI, warned that without immediate and continuous treatment, “the chances to heal from cancer or even reach a reasonable life expectancy are severely harmed.”
Given the collapse of the Rafah evacuation route and the lethal risks of leaving patients inside Gaza, the petitioners say the most practical and safe solution is transferring them to hospitals in east Jerusalem and the West Bank.
They also cite precedent. Between 2019 and 2021, of Gaza patients evacuated into Israel, 57% received treatment in West Bank and east Jerusalem hospitals; Augusta Victoria Hospital in Jerusalem alone treated about 40% of cases before the war.
Other facilities mentioned include Makassed Hospital, the Red Crescent Maternity Hospital, and the Princess Basma Rehabilitation Center in east Jerusalem, as well as several hospitals in the West Bank.
The petition adds that under international law, Israel is obligated to ensure medical access for a population under its effective control.