Al Mezan Center for Human rights revealed on Sunday, August 28, that four Palestinian patients died in the Gaza Strip since the start of 2022 as Israeli occupation denied them travel for treatments.

According to Al Mezan, 6-year-old Farouq Abu Naja, who died on August 28, was denied access to medical care at Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem.

Israeli authorities denied Naja the requisite exit permit to travel to the Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem despite having obtained a special medical referral and secured appointments.

“This delay led to a serious deterioration of Abu Naja’s health condition and eventually to his death on Wednesday, 24 August 2022,” Al Mezan said.

Farouq’s death comes within a long history of Israel denying the Palestinians in Gaza their legal right to travel for treatment. Nearly 850 Gaza patients died over the past 15 years while waiting for a permit to travel outside of Gaza for treatment, according to recent reports.

Physicians for Human Rights-Israel stated in late July 2022 that around one-third of applications for children requiring medical treatment outside Gaza were delayed or denied between January and September last year.

The Israeli suffocating blockade imposed on Gaza since 2006 affects all life aspects as Palestinians are deprived of their legal rights and most basic needs. Not only does Israel impose air, land, and sea blockade on Gaza, but it attacks the Palestinians repeatedly and kills thousands.