Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) Updates & Statement on Gaza Flotilla Attack

Medical Aid for Palestinians strongly condemns the attack on the aid flotilla on the morning of 31 May, an attack which occurred in international waters and has resulted in the deaths of nine civilians.

The people of Gaza have been living under blockade for almost three years. The blockade means the delay or denial of a broad range of items - food, industrial, educational, medical - deemed "non-essential" for a population largely unable to be self-sufficient at the end of decades of occupation.

As the humanitarian crisis deepens, the 1.5 million Palestinians in Gaza are increasingly dependent on international assistance. The relief items in this aid convoy included but a fraction of what is urgently needed in Gaza, including water purification systems, cement for rebuilding, and wheelchairs for persons with disability.

Medical Aid for Palestinians calls for an immediate and unconditional end to the blockade of the Gaza Strip.

MAP's Dr Swee Wins Lifetime Award

MAP founder Dr Swee was presented with a lifetime achievement award at MAP’s 25th anniversary dinner on 11 June in central London.

Over 340 guests attended the event that saw over £300,000 raised towards MAP projects addressing burns injuries, child trauma care and helping Palestinians with disabilities.

A host of famous names included Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Ken Livingstone and Afif Safieh wished MAP well on its anniversary, while our new President Lord Patten delivered a powerful speech criticizing the complicity of the European Union in the crippling Israeli blockade of Gaza.

A series of powerful short documentaries by MAP Films highlighted the ongoing struggle of Palestinians to obtain dignity and access to health.

At the close of the evening the Palestinian band Al Asheqeen performed a thrilling set of music. MAP thanks Al Asheqeen and all of our supporters and guests for making the evening a success.

The European Union must show real courage on the Middle East

MAP President Lord Patten - Inaction renders Europe complicit in illegal acts in the Middle East. It can no longer play third fiddle.

Today's miserable standoff in the Middle East requires new initiatives. The short-term failure of Israeli policies has concentrated global attention on their blockade of Gaza rather than on Iran's pursuit of nuclear weapons. The long-term failure has rendered increasingly difficult a two-state solution as Palestine is broken up into barriered Bantustans.

As President Obama's military commanders have told him, the absence of anything resembling a peace process in the Middle East, and the identification of Washington with a very right-wing Israeli government, has made it more difficult for the US to deal with Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan and others.

If politics does not succeed, then humanitarian aid will continue to be necessary. Yet we should never depend on the provision of humanitarian relief as an excuse for diplomatic drift and the failure to confront intransigence. Organisations such as Medical Aid for Palestinians do not exist so that others can duck their moral and political responsibilities.


Three girls from the UNRWA School at Askar Camp in Nablus have made history by becoming the first Palestinians to win an award at the world's premier youth science competition. Aseel Abu Aleil, Aseel Alshaar and Noor Alarada were competing with 1500 finalists from around the world. They picked up a "special award in applied electronics" at the Intel Science and Engineering Fair in San Jose, California.

MAP is collecting messages of support and congratulations for these amazing girls from Nablus, which UNRWA will then deliver directly to them. Please send your messages through to info@map-uk.org- subject heading 'Science Competition' - it will be great for them to receive messages from around the world.

For more information on MAP's continuing response please sign up to our E-Newsletter - The Monitor / email us at info@map-uk.org / or telephone us on 0207 226 4114

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