A Palestinian cancer survivor has made a massive donation to the Israeli hospital Rambam Medical Centre where he was treated, in order to treat children with the condition and send a message of “solidarity”.
The anonymous donor, believed to be a senior Palestinian authority official, had previously been treated for cancer at the hospital in Haifa, and after seeing Israeli, Palestinian and Syrian children being treated together and speaking to patients and their families, was inspired to donate to the establishment of a playroom for children undergoing radiation therapy.
He said: “Palestinian, Israeli, Syrian and children from other countries receive treatment in the hospital for a variety of serious illnesses and need all the help they can get. I decided to contribute as much as I could, both a humanitarian act and a symbol of solidarity”.
The benefactor stated that “medicine is a bridge between people and my hope is that with the help of this small contribution and others like it in the future, we will all see a better tomorrow.
The official said: “Both Israeli and Palestinian societies suffer from violence and I am striving for a situation where we all can contribute to peace and health: to treat children, save lives, share knowledge, and train Palestinian doctors at Rambam, in order to improve the state of the health systems and the capacity to treat people in the PA areas, and to encourage others to donate and contribute to the betterment of health within our two nations”.
He then added “I decided to make a donation to help save human lives apart from any political considerations”.
Rambam is the largest medical centre in the country’s north and one of Israel’s most renowned hospitals with 1,200 of the patients being children from Gaza and the West Bank.
