Palestinian patients refused access to West Bank hospital over "State of Palestine" letterhead

Israeli authorities on Wednesday prevented a large group of medical patients from the Gaza Strip from traveling to the West Bank for treatment because the letterhead of their referral letters included the phrase "State of Palestine."

Seventy patients who were scheduled to travel to the West Bank via the Erez crossing for treatment were denied entry because they presented documents including the "State of Palestine" on the letterheads, according to sources in the Palestinian liaison department

The sources confirmed to Ma'an that as of Wednesday, patients from Gaza who present referral letters with the "State of Palestine" written on the letterhead would be denied entry to the West Bank. 

The PLO declared independence unilaterally in 1988 and was recognized as a "non-member observer state" by the United Nations in 2012. 

More than 130 countries today recognize Palestine's existence as a state, but Israel refuses to do so.