A RETIRED British surgeon recently returned from Gaza, testified to British MPs that he treated children and civilians who appeared to have been deliberately targeted by Israeli drones.
Nizam Mamode, who volunteered at Nasser Hospital in Gaza, recounted treating a relentless influx of bombing and shooting victims, often facing ‘mass casualty incidents’ involving multiple deaths and critical injuries daily.
The 62-year-old surgeon, visibly emotional and breaking down several times during his testimony, said he and his colleagues had ‘never seen anything on this scale ever’.
‘Drones would come down and pick off civilians, children,’ Mamode revealed. ‘This is not an occasional thing. This was day after day after day, operating on children who would say, ‘I was lying on the ground after a bomb dropped and this quadcopter came down and hovered over me and shot me.’
He estimated that at least 60 per cent of those he treated were women and children, underscoring the impact on vulnerable civilians.
Mamode shared the case of an 8-year-old girl who was bleeding to death during surgery, recounting, ‘I asked for a swab and they said, ‘No more swabs’.’ According to Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor, Israeli forces are killing Palestinian children at rates described as ‘unprecedented in the history of modern wars’, with over 17,000 children killed since 7 October 2023.
Mamode described his time in Gaza as marked by deliberate Israeli attacks on humanitarian convoys, with Israeli forces reportedly targeting aid workers and convoys, including five assaults on UN aid vehicles.
He shared that he spent his entire stay within the hospital grounds due to the severe risks of moving around, highlighting a night-time dilemma: He could either sleep indoors in oppressive heat or outdoors, ‘where drones had the ability to pick me off’. He said: ‘My biggest fear while I was there was being killed by the Israelis.’
Referring to the targeting of safe accommodation, Mamode remarked, ‘All of those guest houses are in the Israeli army’s computers and are designated safe houses, so my assumption is that it was a deliberate attack to discourage aid workers from coming.’
His testimony echoed fears expressed by other international volunteers haunted by the destruction and scale of suffering they witnessed.
The UN Human Rights Office has stated that nearly 70 per cent of those killed in Gaza are women and children, labelling the situation as part of a genocidal campaign against Palestinians.
Labour MP Sarah Champion, chair of the committee, sought to clarify whether rogue snipers were behind these attacks.
Mamode corrected her, stating, ‘No, no. This is the Israeli army coming up as a unit and deliberately shooting.’ His remarks come amid reports of three massacres perpetrated by Israeli forces over the past 24 hours, resulting in the deaths of at least 24 Palestinians and injuries to 11 others, according to medical sources.
Local health officials confirmed the Palestinian death toll from Israel’s ongoing assault now stands at 43,736, with 103,370 additional injuries reported. Emergency services report significant challenges in retrieving bodies from under rubble and in clearing roadways blocked by destruction, as Israeli forces continue to impede the movement of ambulances and civil defence teams within Gaza’s shattered landscape.