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'Gazans evacuated for medical treatment fear they'll never be allowed back home'

Israel decimated the healthcare system in the besieged enclave, forcing Palestinians to seek treatment abroad where possible. Now, those who have been allowed to leave fear Tel Aviv's efforts to ethnically cleanse Gaza may mean they won’t be allowed to return. The interviews in this article were carried out before the ceasefire came into effect on 19 January 2025.

January 21, 2025 at 5:32 pm

Palestinian patients evacuated from Gaza arrive in Etimesgut Airport with their caregivers via a A400M plane of Turkish Ministry of Defense in Ankara, Turkiye on February 14, 2024 [Fatih Kurt/Anadolu Agency]

The humanitarian crisis in Gaza has reached critical levels, driven by the deliberate actions of Israeli occupation forces that obstruct the flow of aid to vulnerable communities. Grassroots activists Hala Sabbah and Lena Dajani of the Sameer Project have exposed how Israel’s blockade and military policies systematically disrupt the delivery of essential supplies, which not only prevent lifesaving assistance from reaching those most in need but also create an environment of exploitation and profiteering, worsening the hardships faced by ordinary Gazans.

Sabbah and Dajani recount harrowing instances of aid being intercepted, stolen and sold at exorbitant prices, with Israeli policies directly facilitating such war profiteering. “Trucks carrying aid are often intercepted by armed gangs,” Sabbah explains. Efforts to challenge this looting are often met with deadly retaliation, including drone strikes. Even international aid organisations have faced scrutiny for inefficiencies; for instance trucks of flour have been stored for weeks before being distributed, leaving starving families in dire straits.

The exploitation extends beyond basic supplies to medical evacuations for Gaza’s children. The UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has revealed that only 446 patients, including 266 children, have been evacuated for medical treatment outside Gaza since Israeli forces occupied the Rafah crossing in May last year. Since Israel’s ongoing military onslaught on Gaza began in October 2023, just over 5,000 people have been evacuated.

Critics argue that this figure underscores Israel’s stranglehold on vital humanitarian aid. With an estimated 12,000 Palestinians in urgent need of medical evacuation abroad, aid groups warn of catastrophic consequences as hospitals struggle to function amid relentless bombardments and almost no resources.

READ: 436,000 homes destroyed in Gaza, reconstruction will cost $40bn

Dajani further exposes how some medical organisations prioritise evacuations not based on need but on their fundraising potential, revealing the ethical compromises within the system. “Maybe it was good intentions at first, but it’s become about choosing the child that is going to make the most money,” she explains. “Bring them out, get the most money out of them, neglect their treatment, then move on to the next child.”

Competition among NGOs for “viral” cases exacerbates this problem. According to Dajani, organisations vie for high-profile cases to boost their online presence and fundraising efforts. In some cases, NGOs have been accused of attempting to undermine each other’s efforts and “claim” children in order to bolster their own status and fundraising power. This rivalry has resulted in situations where families, already in deep distress, are caught up in the drama of which organisation will take credit for evacuating their sick children.

One heartbreaking example of this broken system is the story of eight-year-old Batul, a critically ill child whose life could have been saved had her case received the necessary attention, Sabbah says. Batul, who lived in Refaat Alareer Camp founded by the Sameer Project, suffered from severe health conditions, including celiac disease and likely Crohn’s disease.

Her weakened immune system left her constantly ill and she weighed only 11 kilogrammes. In early December, Batul fell into a coma. When Sabbah questioned why Batul, who had been on an organisation’s evacuation list for seven months, had not yet been prioritised, she was told, “She’s not one of our most critical cases.” Despite Sabbah’s insistence that Batul was on the brink of death, her concerns were dismissed. Tragically, just three days later, Batul passed away.

Sabbah was left heartbroken and frustrated. “If Batul had gone viral and everyone was posting about her, she would be alive right now. This is what we’re dealing with – who gets the most clout, who gets the most funds, which child is the cash cow,” she explains. The circumstances of Batul’s death highlight the flawed priorities of some aid organisations, where the focus on visibility and fundraising overshadows the commitment to saving lives. “It’s horrific because you literally have to have a massive tumour sticking out of your face to get some attention,” Sabbah laments. “The sicker-looking the child, the more likely they are to get help.”

Adding to the tragedy, Batul’s mother was blamed for her daughter’s suffering, accused of “doing her daughter a disservice” by seeking help from multiple organisations. This victim-blaming underscores the dysfunction and moral failures of a system that should prioritise the well-being of the most vulnerable but instead succumbs to internal politics and competition.

The system’s failings extend beyond Batul’s case. A baby evacuated from Egypt to Italy died mid-flight because the organisation overseeing the case failed to ensure the infant was medically stable for travel. “Our babies are just dying because of these organisations,” Sabbah says bluntly. The trauma doesn’t end there. For many families, the relief of escaping Gaza is short-lived, replaced by the harsh realities of life in foreign countries without support systems, community, or even a shared language. “These are people who lived under siege for 17 years. Suddenly they find themselves in a hospital room in Doha, dealing with people who don’t speak a word of Arabic,” Sabbah explains. One father in Italy became suicidal after struggling with isolation. “He said, ‘If you don’t take me back to Gaza now, I’m going to kill myself’,” Sabbah recounts.

READ: Gaza Electricity Company: $450m losses from Israel war 

Adding to the devastation is the permanent separation many families face. “There’s a big chance once the genocide ends and they open the borders that these people are not going to be able to come back,” Sabbah warns. Lawyers and asylum judges have echoed this concern, noting that evacuated families may remain separated for decades, trapped in limbo and unable to return home.

This grim reality ultimately serves Israel’s goal of ethnic cleansing, Sabbah and Dajani argue. “In some sick way, these medical evacuations are working in the favour of Israel,” Sabbah says. “They convince themselves, ‘Oh, look, we’re allowing these sick kids to leave,’ but what benefit are we doing when a child just needs one minor surgery that takes two hours? We pull them out of their life, out of their community, out of the arms of their mum and dad, and put them in a strange country.”

The mental and emotional toll on Palestinian evacuees often goes unnoticed. “Life in Gaza is completely different from every part of the world,” Dajani explains. “It’s like learning to live again for these people.” Yet many organisations fail to consider this. From unprepared medical teams to tone-deaf airport parties welcoming traumatised children, the lack of cultural sensitivity and long-term planning only worsens the suffering. As Sabbah concludes: “We should have the same standards that other war zones apply. Doing the bare minimum isn’t enough.”