4,500 arm and leg amputations during the Gaza genocide

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A young child who lost limbs in the ongoing Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip, receiving health care at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah, central Gaza

THE Palestinian Ministry of Health (MoH) has announced that 4,500 cases of amputation in upper and lower limbs have been registered in the Gaza Strip since the start of Israel’s genocide which has been going on for 16 months now.

On Friday, Director of the health information unit at the ministry, Zaher Al-Wahidi, confirmed the 4,500 amputation cases were recorded up to the end of 2024, as a result of the continuous Israeli massive attack on the Strip.

He explained that 800 Palestinian children and 540 women were among the amputees, adding that these figures reflect the scale of the humanitarian disaster faced by the Palestinian people, especially the most vulnerable groups: children and women.

Doctors and governmental officials expect that the number of amputation cases, especially among children, will be twice the number announced, pointing out that the ongoing Israeli attack and destruction of civilian facilities make it impossible to issue accurate statistics.

‘The numbers are likely to rise as the genocide continues, increasing the pressure on the health system, which is already suffering from a shortage of medical supplies due to the continuing blockade imposed on the Strip for more than 18 years,’ al-Wahdi said.

He called on the international community to act urgently to stop the Israeli violations and ensure the protection of Palestinian citizens, affirming that the health sector is in urgent need of medical and humanitarian support.

Meanwhile, United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini described the tragic situation of Gaza children as a ‘disability pandemic’, highlighting the lack of prostheses and psychological, and physical rehabilitation centres.

Last October, Lisa Dutton, official of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, labelled Gaza as ‘home to the largest group of amputee children in modern history’.

At the time, Dutton quoted UNRWA as saying that ten children in Gaza lose one or both legs every day as a result of the genocide.

A number of prosthetic limbs are provided as part of relief assistance from countries and medical delegations sent to the enclave.

Throughout the ongoing Israeli attack, the Sheikh Hamad Prosthetics Hospital, the only hospital specialising in prosthetics and rehabilitation in the Strip, has been targeted and put out of service.

Since the beginning of the genocide, Israel has been targeting the health sector in Gaza, bombing and besieging hospitals and ordering their evacuation, in addition to banning the entry of medical supplies, especially in northern Gaza, which they invaded once again last October.

Backed by America, Israel has been carrying out a genocide in the Gaza Strip since October 2023, killing and injuring more than 153,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children.

More than 11,000 Palestinians went missing, while dozens of children and elders were starved to death.

Israel continues its massacres, ignoring the two arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court on the 21st of November, 2024 for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Army Minister Yoav Galant for committing war crimes and crimes against humanity in the enclave.