Gaza – Walaa Masoud fears that time is running out before she can travel abroad for treatment of a serious injury sustained in an Israeli airstrike, which threatens to impair her ability to walk again.
Walaa survived beneath the rubble after violent airstrikes destroyed an entire residential block in Jabalia refugee camp, north of the Gaza Strip, causing her a serious injury to her foot bones. She requires treatment outside the Strip to avoid permanent mobility disability.
The treatment she needs is not available in the hospitals of Gaza, which are facing total collapse due to direct Israeli military targeting, the comprehensive siege, and the prevention of importing medical equipment and supplies.
Walaa Masoud dreads enduring a lifelong disability as the occupation prevents her from traveling for treatment outside the Strip (Al Jazeera)
Ineffective Mechanism
The Gaza Ministry of Health says the current mechanism for the wounded to leave for treatment abroad via the Rafah border crossing with Egypt is ineffective and contributes to the deaths of hundreds of the wounded. This view is shared by the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor, which classifies Israel's deliberate obstruction of the travel of thousands of patients and wounded as a "premeditated death sentence."
Desperately awaiting her chance to receive proper treatment, which can save her from an injury that shattered the "ankle joint" of her leg, Walaa says, "Is it not enough that I lost my son and family, and now I have to live the rest of my life disabled?"
Many wounded and ill have lost their lives while awaiting long approvals to travel abroad for treatment. Dr. Marwan Al-Hams, head of the Health Emergency Committee in Rafah, reports that they send a daily list of 300 names of patients and wounded urgently in need of treatment to the Egyptian side. However, only 20 to 50 names are approved.
The Euro-Mediterranean Monitor, based in Geneva, quotes Al-Hams as saying that these approvals come too late, between 24 to 72 hours, leading to the death of some who received the necessary security clearances.
Since the outbreak of the Israeli war on October 7, the occupation has closed the Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing, designated for individuals and humanitarian cases, to traveler movement, including patients and the wounded. Furthermore, the only commercial crossing, Kerem Shalom, is closed, preventing the entry of all humanitarian necessities, including medical ones.
In the first two weeks of this unprecedented aggression in terms of killing and destruction, the Rafah crossing – the only land exit for Gazans to the outside world through Egyptian territories – remained closed before being partially reopened on October 20 to allow the travel of patients and wounded and the entry of humanitarian supplies.
Rami Abdo, head of the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor, told Al Jazeera Net that the movement of sick and wounded leaving is very slow and subject to arbitrary Israeli restrictions, as each individual trying to travel for treatment needs security approval from the occupation army.
The occupation has put 22 hospitals and 52 health centers out of service, destroyed 102 ambulances, and arrested 38 medical staff in Gaza (Al Jazeera)
"War Crime"
As of the end of last week, the Ministry of Health documented that only 491 wounded and 214 sick were able to cross through the Rafah crossing into Egypt for treatment, constituting less than 1% of the total war wounded, estimated to be over 50,000.
Abdo stresses that about 8,000 wounded out of the total require urgent medical intervention, and the restriction on their travel means an Israeli death sentence.
The restrictions on the travel of the wounded and sick occur while Gaza's healthcare system is in a state of complete collapse, according to Abdo. Currently, only 13 of 36 hospitals are operating partially amid many obstacles and limited medical capabilities.
The Ministry of Health reports that the bed capacity has decreased from 3,600 to less than 1,400, with current occupancy rates reaching 206% in the internal patient departments and 250% in intensive care units.
Dr. Marwan Al-Hams, head of the Health Emergency Committee in Rafah, told Al Jazeera Net that the occupation uses the restrictions on the movement of the wounded and sick, as well as medical supplies, as a weapon for killing a second time, after the initial deaths from shells and rockets.
Abdo agrees with Al-Hams that escalating restrictions on the sick and wounded's travel and hindering the flow of medical supplies while the Strip undergoes deadly attacks constitute a form of collective punishment and a blatant violation of international law, amounting to a war crime.
He adds that the restrictions directly linked to the travel of patients and wounded contribute to the increased number of victims of aggression and may act as an additional factor deepening the genocide against Palestinian civilians in the Gaza Strip.
Deliberate Violations
The latest statistics from the Ministry of Health show 18,800 martyrs and more than 51,000 wounded, including 300 health professionals among the martyrs.
The Israeli army targeted 138 health institutions, put 22 hospitals and 52 health centers out of service, destroyed 102 ambulances, and arrested 38 medical staff members.
The Ministry of Health affirms that the occupation deliberately aims to eliminate the health presence in the northern sector to force residents to displace. Additionally, the health situation in hospitals in the southern sector is the worst due to their loss of absorptive and treatment capabilities.
The ministry further states that medical teams prioritize serious cases to save as many lives as possible from the large numbers arriving at the hospitals in the south.
The occupation deliberately maintains the health system in a constant state of collapse, controlling the volume and quality of medical aid.
To stop this collapse, Al-Hams says that an urgent safe humanitarian corridor is needed to ensure the flow of medical supplies and fuel and their access to all hospitals in the north and south, along with a fast mechanism for the wounded and sick to travel abroad for treatment.
