Former Ambassador Alan Baker, who is currently a senior researcher at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, thinks Israel is in no way obligated to deliver vaccines to Palestinians or to residents of Gaza.
"The Geneva Convention does not apply in the territories and since we signed the Oslo Accords with the PLO, the only legal regime operating in the territories is the one defined in the Oslo Accords. There is no commitment that implies that we need to provide the Palestinians with vaccines," Baker told Arutz Sheva on Tuesday.
"We have transferred all the powers on health and medicine to the Palestinians. There are those who claim that Israel is an occupying state, but from the moment we transferred control there to the Palestinian Authority, it is theirs. It is not our responsibility," he added.
"The only civilian commitment in the areas of health and disease prevention is to cooperate and exchange information. That is the only thing we need to do and are doing," continued Baker.
At the same time, he noted, "We are close to them and they are coming to us so maybe medically it is important that we cooperate both in Judea and Samaria and in Gaza and I guess that is what is happening."
Baker said that he believes that in the end, the bulk of the vaccines will come from Israel. "Because there is a geographical and epidemiological proximity they will eventually get vaccinated from us and it is possible that they will get them long before other countries."