The COVID-19 threat underscores the interconnectedness of Israeli and Palestinian interests.
On March 22, authorities in Gaza affirmed the inevitable: the first two confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the Gaza Strip. Gazan officials reported that the two men were immediately quarantined upon entry via Egypt’s Rafah border crossing with the enclave and have remained there, along with all those who had been in contact with them. Yet, since then, the number of confirmed cases has jumped, and the question of how the further spread of the virus in Gaza can be contained weighs heavily for this densely populated territory, long beleaguered by wars and severe deficiencies in its health care infrastructure.
The border area with Egypt in Rafah, Gaza Strip, Sept. 19, 2015. Only about 20 tunnels of 250 that once played a central role in the economy of Rafah are still operating — the worst situation smugglers can remember. (Wissam Nassar/The New York Times)
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