There are so many jokes about Jewish doctors…and yet, one of the key ways in which Israelis help others here in Israel and abroad is by sending medical teams. We have done this in countless natural disasters. Palestinians are regularly admitted to our hospitals, even Palestinian leaders, to give them complicated and excellent care not available in their own cities and hospitals. From Iraq, in the midst of war, children have been brought to Israel. From Jordan, and Egypt. They are brought here quietly, treated, cured and sent back home with little acknowledgement that it was their “enemy” that gave them life, that saved their children, that bettered their health and conditions.
A few weeks ago, on the same day that rockets from Gaza were falling and injuring Israeli civilians, doctors were performing a routine heart operation on a tiny Palestinian infant whole life was saved…because we have the know-how. Because we focus our resources not on bombs – but on education, not on rockets – but on developing medical devices and equipment that revolutionize the medical world.
Another recent story shows how we quietly reach far across the world, seeking to help others…and this story, like all the others, reminds us that This is Israel, too.
Israel launches humanitarian mission in Vietnam
An initiative presented by Israeli ambassador, led by Israeli doctor, sends medical staff of 54 to remote areas in Vietnam to treat the sick and poor
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