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| By: Associated Press |
| Published: August 28, 2006 |
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More than 150 workers at two Palestinian hospitals in the West Bank went on strike Monday to demand that the cash-strapped Hamas government pay their long-overdue salaries.
The two public hospitals in the West Bank city of Nablus had to turn patients away since about a third of their staff were not working, said a spokesman for Raffidiyeh Hospital, Jamil Ishtayeh.
"We can't continue unless we get our salaries," said a doctor, Kamal Al-Wazani, standing with other striking employees outside the hospital. "We have been quiet six months and can't be quiet any longer."
Hamas, which came to power in March, has been unable to pay salaries to 165,000 civil servants after Israel and Western countries cut off aid, demanding Hamas recognize Israel and renounce violence. Hamas has refused to change its militant platform.
The civil servants union announced earlier this week that about 80,000 workers would launch an open-ended strike Sept. 2, the first day of the school year. The workers will include 37,000 teachers and 25,000 health workers, the union said.
The government has given out partial payments to workers at some points since it took power.
Palestinians had initially been patient, waiting to see how Hamas would overcome its financial problems. But in recent weeks, frustration has risen and Palestinians have taken to the streets in protest. Last week, thousands of Palestinians in Gaza demonstrated outside parliament, waving pita bread in the air as a sign of growing poverty. |
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