In 2021, in the oPt, including East Jerusalem, coronavirus disease (COVID-19) was the leading cause of death, followed by cardiovascular disease and cancer.1 The probability of dying between the ages of 30 and 70 from selected non-communicable diseases was 26.7% compared to 8.8% in Israel. The Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey for the oPt in 2019/2020 revealed disparities in the infant mortality rate. For Palestinians in the oPt, it was 12 per 1,000, higher for children born in refugee camps (17 per 1,000), while under-five mortality was 14 per 1,000 and higher for boys (16 per 1,000) than for girls (12 per 1,000). ). These figures compare with an infant mortality rate of 3 per 1,000 and under-five mortality of 4 per 1,000 in Israel in the same year.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, male violence increased by approximately 20% during confinement, in line with the rest of the world where the pandemic is having negative consequences for Palestinian women socially, economically, health-wise... it is also weakening their participation in the labour market and in the political sector. Long confinement, restricted mobility, loss of the only source of income for hundreds of families and uncertainty about the future have put most Palestinian women at risk of isolation and domestic violence.
This is compounded by limited access to health care, inability to access psychosocial support, social and family protection services or justice, as courts are closed as a result of confinement. In addition, the closure of many businesses and small and medium-sized enterprises has had a direct impact on women and youth, leading to increased unemployment, poverty and food insecurity.
Health determinants continue to be profoundly affected by the ongoing occupation. The economic implications of the occupation have contributed to high rates of unemployment (in Q2 2022, 44% in the Gaza Strip; 14% in the West Bank), as well as high rates of poverty and food insecurity (one third of the Palestinian population in the oPt, including East Jerusalem, or 1.78 million people, are severely food insecure).
Access to water and sanitation is impeded, particularly for vulnerable communities in Area C of the West Bank, refugee communities and the Gaza Strip, where 1.37 million Palestinians will experience severe to catastrophic humanitarian water and sanitation needs by 2023. Meanwhile, discriminatory planning procedures, including demolition and displacement practices, limit the development of infrastructure needed to promote health and wellbeing in these communities and create situations of precariousness and insecurity that contribute to the poor health and health inequalities affecting Palestinian households. 18.
18 https://apps.who.int/gb/ebwha/pdf_files/WHA76/A76_15-en.pdf