Denmark Refuses to Treat Gaza Patients

While European nations like France, Norway, Germany, and Italy have raced to take in hundreds of patients from Gaza over the last year, Denmark stands alone in its refusal to take in Palestinian patients. Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen justifies her position with fears of more Palestinians coming through family reunification applications.

“The issue of family reunification could very quickly arise,” she told Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten on Aug. 15.

The move means Denmark once again is showcasing its strong anti-immigration policies, a move firmly backed by Danes. Remarkably, Frederiksen is not a right-wing politician, but firmly in the camp of left-wing socialists. Yet, time and time again, she has shown she is willing to protect her country from mass immigration. Denmark has one of the lowest shares of migrants of any Western European country, even if the country’s right says much more needs to be done.

Nearly half the Danish population supports Frederiksen’s stance, with 46 percent of Danes supporting blocking sick patients from Gaza, according to an Epinion poll conducted for DR. Only a third of Danes believe the borders should be opened to Gazan patients.

A year and a half ago, the World Health Organization (WHO) requested that EU countries accept patients from Gaza for treatment, with 11 EU countries doing so.

According to a report from Le Monde, Frederiksen refuses to bow to pressure in her country, “which she has now explicitly justified by the ultra-restrictive migration policy pursued by her coalition government. The fact that most patients are children makes no difference,” she explained.

Notably, she referred to the issue of more migrants arriving, using the Gazan patients as a backdoor.

Frederiksen says her country is investing in hospitals and treatments in neighboring countries to support the wounded from Gaza; however, some humanitarian organizations say these countries are not equipped to handle the influx of patients.

“It is our clear belief that we can help more people if we help in the immediate area,” said Frederiksen in May.

“The nearby areas cannot take more and not at all cope with these very complicated cases, which are on the WHO list,” said Vibeke Brix Christensen, who is a consultant at the Rigshospitalet and medical advisor at Doctors Without Borders.

However, as with all calls for humanitarian sympathy, in many cases, it has turned into nothing more than a call for more mass immigration. Hundreds of thousands of Syrians, for instance, are now citizens in European countries. Despite Assad falling from power, they have no plans to return home. Crime from this group has exploded, leaving countless Europeans maimed, raped, and killed over the years.

It appears Denmark does not want to go down that path.

Other parties are supportive of the Danish prime minister’s stance, including the Liberal Alliance (LA) and the Danish Democrats.

“It needs to be done in the immediate areas where there are plenty of good hospitals at a smaller distance than 3,000 kilometers,” said the foreign rapporteur for LA, Lars-Christian Brask.

“It doesn’t belong in Denmark at all. We are miles away from Gaza, and there is no cause at all,” said Charlotte Munch, foreign rapporteur for the Danish Democrats.

Meanwhile, SF is ready to bring five to ten sick children from Gaza into Denmark on a trial basis. However, the party also believes the main focus should be on efforts in the immediate area.

“We think there is more logical to massively support the hospitals in Cairo, Amman and East Jerusalem, and perhaps some of the other neighboring states that we can help support the healthcare system in the areas so that they can accept more Palestinians,” said the party’s foreign rapporteur, Karsten Hønge.

Of course, Europe’s pro-migration left shoulders much of the blame for Denmark’s current stance. Over the years, it has become clear that migrants fleeing war zones cross through many “safe” countries on their way to social welfare systems like Denmark, where they receive lavish benefits and then never leave.

Once these migrants enter the country, these same leftist groups fight tooth and nail to make sure no migrant is ever sent home. In many cases, what was first a form of aid to refugees becomes life-long resettlement programs, citizenship, and more mass immigration through family reunification.

In short, Denmark has little incentive to accept migrants, with history serving as a guide. Many Europeans have grown wise to this scheme, which is why more Danes support Frederiksen’s stance than oppose it.