Mel Frykberg
GAZA CITY, May 21 2009 (IPS) – The lives of hundreds of critically ill Gazans continue to be jeopardised by the power struggle between rival Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah, and political blackmail by Israel.
Mohammed Zibdeh, 12, who has cancer of the brain is waiting in Gaza city for a permit to travel to Israel for advanced treatment. He is dependent on a ventilator connected to his throat for survival.
Last year Mohammed was able to secure a permit to travel to an Israeli hospital where he received chemotherapy for his brain tumour, causing the tumour to shrink significantly.
However, a power struggle between Fatah and Hamas over the issuance of exit permits for patients, and Israel s reluctance to issue visas for Gazans on the basis of al…
Emilio Godoy
MEXICO CITY, Jun 3 2011 (IPS) – Emissions of radioactive materials from the burning of fossil fuels and the production of chemical fertilisers are another reason to come up with sustainable alternatives, experts say.
Large-scale treatment of raw materials that contain naturally occurring radioactive material can lead to the concentration of radiation in products or waste, as in the case of the production of artificial phosphate fertilisers as well as oil and gas.
The Fukushima nuclear plant disaster caused by the Mar. 11 earthquake and tsunami in Japan has heightened global awareness on the dangers of nuclear energy, and has awakened new concern about all sources of radiation ahead of , celebrated Jun. 5.
Combustion of oil, natural gas and coal Me…
PHILADELPHIA and NEW DELHI, Mar 11 2020 (IPS) – About 15% of the world s population lives with some form of disability, of whom 2-4% experience significant difficulties in functioning. Disability is part of the human condition, and almost everyone will be temporarily or permanently impaired at some point in life, and those who survive into old age will experience increasing difficulties in functioning. Here the focus is on empirical validation of whether disabilities are associated with economic hardships through loss of employment and consequently impoverishment in rural India. The motivation stems from continuing neglect of health in the budgetary allocations –including the allocations for 2020-21.
