The Undersecretary of the Palestinian Ministry of Health, Wael Al-Sheikh, confirmed today, Sunday, that the Ministry of Health is facing a major shortage of medicines and medical supplies, as a result of the financial crisis caused by the occupation’s theft of the Palestinian people’s money.

Al-Sheikh explained, in statements to the media, that “120 types of medicines, including 20 types of cancer drugs, have zero stock in our warehouses, and 420 types of medical consumables, 170 of which are specialized for the heart, eyes, and others, have zero stock.”

The Undersecretary of the Palestinian Ministry of Health considered that this reflects a major problem that directly affects the health sector.

Al-Sheikh pointed out that the Ministry of Health's debt is close to 3 billion shekels, the largest part of which is for private and public hospitals.

The Undersecretary of the Palestinian Ministry of Health confirmed that this debt has been accumulating over the past years, and that the Ministry of Finance is making payments to cover this debt, but consumption is more than what is being paid.

Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa pointed out that the Israeli occupation authorities continue to deduct the allocations of the families of martyrs and prisoners, which began in February 2019, and have so far amounted to about 3.5 billion shekels.