Israeli forces are increasing attacks on healthcare workers in Palestine

WASHINGTON, US - Frontline healthcare workers in Palestine will receive bulletproof vests amid increasing attacks on them by Israeli forces, reported United Press International (UPI).

The Palestine Red Crescent Society reported in a news release that their medical teams had experienced 193 separate attacks in the first six months of the year, a 310 per cent increase compared to the same period in 2022.

"This includes physical assaults, targeting with live ammunition and other weapons by Israeli forces, and repeated obstruction while trying to reach and transport the wounded," the aid organisation said in its statement.

"Last year, 105 paramedics were injured while on duty, including as a result of live ammunition and rubber-coated steel bullets."

Around 20 sets of bulletproof vests and helmets are being provided to the first responders by the Medical Aid for Palestinians, worth about US$24,000.

The organisation cited a United Nations (UN) report from 2019 that described Palestine as "one of the most dangerous places in the world to be a healthcare worker."

Israelis have obstructed Red Crescent workers from aiding a pregnant woman in labor and confiscated the keys of two ambulances whose drivers were trying to respond to an emergency call, according to the organisation.

Israelis have been increasing their attacks on Palestinians in recent months, as well as establishing illegal settlements in disputed areas.

Israeli forces have killed 174 Palestinians this year as of June 20, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), which tracks casualties in the region.

Meanwhile, 23 Israelis have died over that same period.

OCHA has recorded 6,354 Palestinian fatalities since 2008. There have been just 302 Israeli fatalities in that same span. - BERNAMA-UPI