A preliminary IDF Homefront Command medical delegation, comprising two doctors and a Homefront Command officer, arrived today (Monday 21 March 2011) in the Miyagi prefecture north of Tokyo and have begun their appraisal of requirements that will enable the dispatch of the full-scale medical delegation, which is due to leave Israel shortly. Israel is one of the first countries to dispatch a medical delegation to Japan. To date, only a few international search and rescue teams have provided assistance, but no medical teams have been dispatched. The Israeli team will be located in the Miyagi prefecture, about six hours north of Tokyo, which was hardest hit by the recent Tsunami. The team will establish a medical clinic geared to handle the casualties and refugees concentrated in the region. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Israeli embassy in Tokyo will facilitate the dispatch of the team, and will also coordinate communications between the Japanese authorities and the IDF Homefront Command. In coordination with the Japanese authorities and according to requirements of the Japanese National Disaster Center, the MFA and Ministry of Defense will dispatch a consignment consisting of ten thousand coats, six thousand blankets, six thousand pairs of gloves and 150 mobile toilets,. Over the past few days, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has worked with the Japanese authorities to determine a list of the most necessary items. The Japanese authorities noted that Israel will be one of the first countries to provide aid in accordance with their requirements. While other countries sent planeloads of equipment, they did not consult with the Japanese regarding specific requirements. The Japanese also noted Israeli efficiency and flexibility in determining the list of items that would be shipped to Japan.
Wednesday, 23 March 2011
March 21st, 2011
An Israeli medical delegation will establish a medical clinic geared to handle the casualties and refugees concentrated in the Miyagi prefecture, six hours north of Tokyo.
Israel first to set up field hospital in Japan
By JERUSALEM POST STAFF 03/21/2011
Surgery established at Minamisanriko, fishing city devastated by quake; Israel also providing aid for the homeless.
A field hospital Israel is establishing in Japan is the first to be set up by any of the nations offering outside assistance, Israel’s ambassador to Japan, Nissim Ben Shitrit, said Monday, adding that the Japanese were extremely appreciative.
Ben Shitrit said the hospital was being established at Minamisanriko, a fishing city some 500 km. north of Tokyo that was utterly overwhelmed by the quake and tsunami, and where some 10,000 people are dead or missing.
A five-strong Israeli team “is setting up the surgery right now,” the ambassador said.
“They are evaluating the needs today so that a larger team can be dispatched.”
Ben Shitrit confirmed that Israel was also providing tons of aid assistance – including mattresses, blankets, coats, gloves and chemical toilets – for some of the half-million people who are homeless, many of them now living in public facilities.
“I don’t know how or why it is that our field hospital is the first,” the ambassador said.
“Maybe we moved faster.
Maybe it’s because of our experience.”
He said the medical crisis would take a long time to resolve, but he believed the Japanese government would bring the situation under control in the coming weeks.
Appreciation for Israel’s help, he said, was clear in the reporting in the Japanese media and in the grateful response of people in the field.
Asked whether Israel had provided any assistance in grappling with the difficulties affecting Japanese nuclear facilities, Ben Shitrit said no.
“That’s an issue for the Japanese and the Americans only,” he said.
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