Testimony: ISA prevents Gazan heart patient who refused to collaborate from entering Israel for treatment, Nov. 2007
Sha'ban'Obeid, heart Patient
Sha'ban'Obeid
I had a heart attack in September 2005. I was taken to al-Aqsa Hospital , in Deir al-Balah, and then to a-Shifa Hospital , in Gaza . Because I did not regain consciousness, I was transferred to the Red Cross hospital in the city. The next day, due to my serious condition, I was transferred to Barzilai Hospital in Israel .
On 29 September 2005, after being at Barzilai for about a week I underwent a catheterization and the doctors also installed a stent in my left coronary artery. After my condition stabilized, I returned to Gaza . I continued to receive treatment, at different hospitals, from 2005-2007. On April 2006, I went to a Cairo cardiology clinic for treatment and then returned home. On June 2006, having received a referral from the Palestinian Ministry of Health, I went to Jordan to undergo tests.
When I returned from Jordan , I contacted the doctor who treated me at Barzilai, the head of the cardiology department, Dr. Jaffer Jamal, and told him about the tests. He made an appointment for me at Barzilai for 12 September 2006. Through the Palestinian Ministry of Health, I requested a permit to enter Israel , and Israel granted the request. I underwent tests at Barzilai, and the doctor told me that my condition was OK, but that I needed to return for treatment. He said that if my condition deteriorated, I should contact him for an appointment.
On my way back to the Gaza Strip, at Erez Checkpoint, I was told that I had to speak with the Shabak [ISA]. A person in civilian dress searched me and then took me to a room in which a person was sitting. He too was in civilian clothes. He said his name was Moshe. He questioned me, asking what my name was, where I worked, what organization I belonged to, how many brothers I had, and what they did for a living. Then he suggested that we go somewhere to have a coffee and so I could meet some other people, but I refused. Then he told me that he wanted to make a deal with me. I asked him what kind of deal, and he said: “Information in exchange for money.” He said I would have to supply information about laborers and other people. I told him I was sick and unable to move about easily, and that I didn't agree to the deal. I told him I didn't want to work with the Shabak. He told me I would have to return to Israel for medical treatment, and that if I agreed [to the deal], he would make things easy for me. I refused. He shook his head and said, “May God help you enter Israel after this meeting.”
I crossed into Gaza . A few months later, I received an appointment from Barzilai Hospital to complete the treatment, but Israel refused to give me a permit. I received appointments for 6 March, 20 March, 12 April, and 15 May, but Israel did not give me a permit to enter for any of them. The last one I got was on 25 September. Israel has not yet approved the request.
I have all the necessary documents. I submitted them via a Ministry of Health official, Mr. Ahmad Abu Ghazeh. He told me I was refused on security grounds. But I have already been in Israel , and more than once. I need to undergo important tests and need a pacemaker. My life will continue to be in danger until I undergo this treatment.
Sha'ban Fares Salameh Abu 'Obeid, 37, married, is an official in the Palestinian Ministry of Agriculture and a resident of Deir al-Balah, the Gaza Strip. The testimony was given to Khaled al-‘Azayzeh at the witness’s home on 27 November 2007.