Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem
Gaza

The Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem was officially established in the mid-1970’s, and extends over five countries, including Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Palestine, and Israel, within the Province of Jerusalem and the Middle East. It includes 31 parishes, and supports 35 institutions which are spread across all five countries. The church supports various hospitals, schools, clinics, vocational training programs, and programs and institutions for the disabled and the elderly.

One such program, the Al-Ahli Hospital, was established in 1882 by the Church of Mission Society and is located in the Gaza Strip area of Palestine. It became a service ministry of the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem in 1982, and continues to provide important medical and surgical care to all people of the Gaza Strip. Over 60 percent of the Strip’s residents live in refugee camps, and a significant portion of the hospital’s care is charitable as they serve a community of exceptionally poor citizens. Al-Ahli has also responded to the needs of the victims of crises, including providing medical treatment to those involved in the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict.

The Hospital offers out- and in-patient care, preventive medicine, rehabilitation programs, and in-service training. It contains 80 beds in its general surgery, general medicine, gynecology/obstetrics, and pediatrics departments, and also provides more specialized care, including orthopedics, plastic surgery, and urology. In addition to its hospital facility, Al-Ahli offers mobile clinics in villages of the Gaza Strip on a monthly basis.

Due to the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict, unemployment in the West Bank and Gaza Strip has reached 70 percent (and is still rising). Even those who still have jobs are often subject to irregular paychecks and lowered salaries. The rapid economic decline has pushed a huge percentage of the population below the poverty line, and Al-Ahli Hospital has subsequently experienced a severe financial crisis. Patients who used to be able to pay their fees for hospital treatment are often now unable to do so, and the hospital is having trouble paying its regular employees, as well as the additional emergency personnel currently needed. The Hospital has also experienced physical damage from bombing in the area.

Funding is greatly needed to help the Al-Ahli Hospital get back on its feet and able to fully support the Gaza Strip in its time of crisis.