Palestine: Again and again, people wounded in Israeli attacks are arriving at MSF hospitals
MSF treats eight patients after Israeli airstrikes hit Gaza
On July 25, once again, our medical teams in Gaza, Palestine, treated patients with devastating blast injuries caused by Israeli forces’ airstrikes. Seven airstrikes hit different areas of Gaza between 12 and 6 pm. A total of eight wounded patients were referred to the Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) field hospital in Al Zawayda, Deir al-Balah.
In the last 30 days, MSF teams at this field hospital have treated 49 patients injured in Israeli airstrikes or by Israeli snipers. At least 15 of them were children.
“What the medical teams keep saying is that it’s not a ceasefire at all.”
Randa Masoud, physician and project medical coordinator
“One patient we received on Saturday was so badly injured that we needed to operate on him immediately,” says Randa Masoud, physician and project medical coordinator. “We had to perform a three-limb amputation. He also completely lost his vision in one eye and as the other eye has significant trauma, he will most probably be blind for the rest of his life.”
“Less than two hours later, another airstrike hit in Deir al-Balah, close to Al Aqsa hospital,” Masoud says. “And from that casualty we sent our ambulances twice to pick up six people in total. What the medical teams keep saying is that it’s not a ceasefire at all.”
The strike close to Al Aqsa hit the entrance of the hospital, killing two people and injuring 10. As well as treating patients injured in this strike, later that day additional people were referred to our field hospital from Al Aqsa hospital as all their surgical beds were full.
The protection of healthcare facilities must be respected. Every attack on or around a health facility puts the lives of patients, caregivers and medical staff at risk, while disrupting the delivery of essential care for everyone who depends on it.
Across Palestine, people are under constant attack from Israeli forces. They are being physically wounded, suffering profound psychological damage and are blocked from accessing care.
We keep saying it. We keep witnessing it. Patients keep paying the price.
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