A medical aid plane from China landed in Jordan with tons of medicines, quick medical test equipment for COVID-19 and ventilators for both Jordan and Palestine.
Ambassador of the People's Republic of China to the Palestinian Territories Guo Wei (R) and Palestinian Minister of Health Dr. Mai Kila at a ceremony to deliver Chinese aid to the Palestinian government. (Photo: CGTN)
Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Ishtaia had announced that the People's Republic of China promised to send emergency medical aid to the Palestinians and Jordan to strengthen health services for Palestinian patients.
"Our country is waiting for the arrival of medical assistance from China to fill the deficit faced by the Palestinians in the health sector," the prime minister said in a press conference.
Ambassador of the People's Republic of China in Palestine Guo Wei delivered medical assistance coming from China to the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Ramallah, where the ambassador confirmed that China stands with the Palestinian people in the face of the pandemic.
He confirmed that Beijing will continue to support the Palestinians in their fight against COVID-19 and provide them with all necessary medical equipment and devices to strengthen their resilience, stressing that the Chinese government chartered a private plane in order to facilitate the arrival of aid to Palestine under the air embargo.
"This new package of aid was transported from Beijing to Palestine by private plane. Five days before this package of aid, there were Chinese non-governmental donations that arrived in Palestine. I am proud of the deep friendship and bilateral relations between the two countries, and I am firmly convinced that Chinese support for Palestine will continue as the Palestinian people continue to fight this epidemic."
Palestinian Minister of Health Mai Kila, who was present to receive the shipment of aid provided by China, expressed her deep thanks to the Chinese people, and stressed that these medical supplies are not available in the domestic and regional markets and therefore being provided today by the Chinese government is of great importance.
"Ever since its takeoff, the Palestinian revolution has had special relations with China, which had provided great assistance to the Palestinian revolution at that time in all fields. Also, they are helping us as we are establishing our Palestinian state on the soil of our Palestinian territory. Most importantly, China always stands with Palestine in international forums and votes for Palestine. This is really what has had a positive impact on the Palestinian presence in international forums."
The Palestinian territories have been in an emergency situation since the first cases of COVID-19 were reported on March 5. That emergency is due to the weakness of the local health sector and the lack of medical equipment to deal with the pandemic, with only 120 ventilators available in hospitals and medical centers in the Palestinian Authority (West Bank and Gaza) to serve more than five million residents, according to data from the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
The Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip, which suffers from a severe shortage of medical supplies and the access of screening strips, announced the completion of two quarantine centers, north and south of the Gaza Strip, to accommodate 1,000 cases.
Nevertheless, the shortage of medical equipment and respirators hinders the completion of the two projects and prevents the Palestinians from raising the readiness of the health sector, while medical devices and supplies donated by the Chinese government to the Palestinians are expected to be a cornerstone in supporting the centers of medical isolation and providing hospitals with the necessary equipment and medicines in order to support them in the battle against COVID-19.