we've been hearing a lot about how
israel is giving out vaccines against
covid faster than any other country but
the palestinians
have been slow just to get supplies
all around the world there are vaccine
haves and have-nots but this is one of
the starkest examples because people
here
live and work closely together it's a
complicated
i've come to picture of the best
palestinian hospitals but it's in east
jerusalem
part of the palestinian territories
annexed by israel
and under its full control
so here israel is vaccinating dr faddy
and the rest of the medical staff
but not the patients who come from
across the occupied west bank and gaza
strip
so now that the vaccination program
started do you feel
a bit of a sense of relief that there's
more protection for you and your staff
not that much really why not i got the
vaccine but i'm not relieved
we were not able to deliver vaccination
to our patients
to our families back in the west bank
and gaza there is a problem of
inequality
you don't feel happy that you are
getting the vaccination and the other
part of your people
cannot what makes him feel worse
is that the health care systems in other
palestinian areas are struggling so much
more
there's a hot debate about who should be
vaccinating palestinians
in the west bank and gaza those who
think it's israel's responsibility
point to the geneva conventions those
who say it's up to the palestinian
authority
look to the oslo accords it all adds to
the long list of
unresolved issues that experts on
international law
disagree on here so we've come from
jerusalem
in toda israeli checkpoint over here
i notice a lot of people without masks
here in the west bank
even though infection rates are high and
many people are wary of being vaccinated
manal is one of them even though she's
seen all her acting work dry up
and there is a kind of this
discrimination because in the end
we are so much uh in a connection in
connection with the israelis
either by people working there or in on
your daily life they are controlling
our everyday life so it is unfair that
they got the vaccina we are not
we get a vaccine as soon as you can i'm
not with the conspiracy theory at all
i know that there is a virus i know that
it is uh
scientifically and medically approved
but
with the vaccine i don't know if
if i want to take it or not the
palestinian authority
says israel has a duty to give vaccines
to palestinians
but it's not officially asking for them
its politicians don't want to look weak
as though they can't handle this crisis
the hamas government in gaza doesn't
want to look weak either technically
the palestinian authority should be
sending it vaccines
but it's also asking qatar for help
but at this building site the nuts and
bolts of the situation
are seen very differently raul relies on
workers
from the west bank and is pushing for
israel to vaccinate them
they're essential to both economies we
are depending on
65 000 palestinian workers they are
working in the core
jobs of the construction and we need
them because without them we cannot
construct
now i think this is logic that uh
also we have to vaccine the israelis
people and also the palestinians
at least that are working with us when
you're putting your argument to the
israeli government about the palestinian
workers what do you say
first of all it's human okay because
they are our neighbors
and they are not in a very good
condition economically conditioned
muhammad is from hebron he's been
staying in israel
away from his home and his family for
months so he can keep his job
from
the palestinians are working with the
world health organization
and doing some of their own vaccine
deals
israel says it's prioritizing its own
citizens
but it isn't ruling out vaccinating more
palestinians
already it's giving doses to prisoners
in its jails
doctors say it makes sense for herd
immunity
we are living together we are we almost
have no borders
if we vaccinate the israelis and
detoxing the palestinian people in west
bank and gaza you still cannot break the
chain of
of infection you cannot fight the
pandemic very well
this pandemic's been revealing israel's
international connections
its money its reputation for science all
helped it to get vaccines
while the palestinians relatively poor
stateless
and a lot less organized have been at a
big disadvantage
it's clearly shown the interdependence
of both sides
but also the deep divisions
you