This week the media has repeatedly praised the Israeli government for its rapid vaccine rollout — totally ignoring the fact that these robust plans do not include the millions of Palestinians under Israeli military control. It is medical apartheid.

As the occupying force, Israel not only has a moral but a legal obligation (Article 56 of the Fourth Geneva Convention*) to ensure that the Palestinians can quickly access a quality vaccine. The Israeli government’s restriction and control of 2.7 million Palestinians in the West Bank and its blockade on 2 million Palestinians in Gaza make it almost impossible for Palestinians to access the vaccine on their own.

Sign this petition demanding that the Israeli Government ensure that Palestinians receive COVID-19 vaccine, and demonstrate that American Jews will not tolerate medical apartheid.

At the beginning of this year, we heard what was at first incredible news: the Israeli government managed to provide the COVID vaccine to 1 million people, over 10% of its population. However, soon after, we learned that despite this rapid and careful administration of the vaccine to people living in the West Bank, around 4.7 million Palestinians are excluded from this process — the Israeli government is only providing Israeli settlers, living on stolen Palestinian land, with the vaccine.

This separate-and-unequal system is how the occupation works. Because of long-term restrictions related to the Israeli military occupation, the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank lacks the financial means to purchase and distribute the vaccine. Because of the inhumane Israeli military blockade, hospitals in Gaza already have an extremely difficult time simply importing essential medical equipment to even treat COVID, let alone purchase and store the vaccine.

We know the tragic consequences of a government choosing one group’s health and humanity over another’s. That is why we join groups like Rabbis for Human Rights, Adalah Justice Project, B’Tselem, Amnesty International, and Combatants for Peace in urging Israel to fulfill its duties and moral responsibilities to assist the Palestinian health systems and Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

As American Jews, we call on the Israeli government do everything in its power to make the vaccine equally accessible to Palestinians, echoing the demands of human rights groups on the Israeli government:

• Publish the quantity of vaccinations reserved for the Palestinian population and provide a specific timeline for their transfer.

• Ensure that the vaccines provided for the Palestinian population meet the same standards of approval as those distributed to the Israeli population.

• Ensure smooth entry of vaccines and other medical equipment to the occupied Palestinian territories, including preserving a ‘cold chain’ to keep vaccines refrigerated during transit if necessary.

• Where the PA cannot fund vaccines and their distribution among the Palestinian population, Israel must provide full financial support that is not deducted from the PA’s tax dollars.

• Lift the closure on the Gaza Strip to enable the proper functioning of its health system in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.

Sign our petition if you agree that Israel ensure that the Palestinian people under Israeli military control have access to a quality COVID vaccine NOW.