National Arab American Medical Association Urges Immediate Cessation of Bombing and Siege of the Gaza Strip
October 12, 2023
The National Arab American Medical Association calls for the immediate cessation of bombing in the Gaza Strip and the lifting of the inhumane siege to minimize loss of life and to enable humanitarian relief to reach the injured, the hungry, the displaced, and the homeless.
As of October 12, Israeli warplanes have destroyed 22,639 housing units,10 health institutions (including 7 hospitals), 48 schools, and the Islamic University in Gaza. As of October 11, in excess of 1100 are known to be dead, five thousand are wounded, and 200,000 are homeless in the Gaza Strip. On top of that, the civilian population faces a complete Israeli blockade of food, water, medical supplies, electricity, and fuel. Such indiscriminate blockades constitute war crimes and crimes against humanity in humanitarian law. The occupying power is supposed to be protecting the civilians under its aegis, not killing them.
NAAMA counts among its members innumerable students, alumni, and faculty of universities and medical institutions across the United States. Our humanitarian activism focuses of medical relief and capacity building at home and abroad. As an organization of healthcare professionals, we strive to promote health, wellness, and life for all. This goes to the core of our shared beliefs and humanity. We urge that all good offices of government and international agencies waste no time to stop the ongoing violence and lift the siege on Gaza, lest we witness a cataclysmic human catastrophe which we may not be able salvage.
NAAMA believes that creating peaceful conditions on the ground is the best way to ensure that aid and services may be resumed to the innocent people suffering in Gaza. Thus we urge cessation of violence and resumption of key supplies and services, upon which the 2.4 million residents of Gaza rely.
The National Arab American Medical Association is the largest educational, cultural and humanitarian association of Arab-American medical professionals in North America.