Italy: Over 700 doctors, nurses join hunger strike to protest starvation in Gaza

More than 700 doctors, nurses and healthcare workers in the Tuscan region of central Italy have launched a symbolic hunger strike in protest of what they describe as genocide and the deliberate starvation of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

According to the Italian newspaper Corriere Fiorentino, participants began their rolling fasts on Tuesday, taking turns to skip lunch during work breaks at over 40 hospitals and medical centres across Tuscany. The move aims to show solidarity with civilians in Gaza.

Medical staff held up signs condemning the Israeli assault, describing the situation in Gaza as a campaign of systematic genocide and starvation. They also shared photos of themselves outside the healthcare facilities where they work.

A digiuno per Gaza, l’iniziativa di oltre settecento sanitari toscani “contro il genocidio” https://t.co/LEPVKDxjWU

— Repubblica Firenze (@rep_firenze) July 30, 2025

In a statement, the campaign organisers said: “We cannot remain silent in the face of the tragedy in Gaza. After 21 months of war and more than 60,000 deaths – many of them children – people are now dying of hunger.”

The statement added: “The Israeli government is committing genocide and is deliberately starving an entire population.”

They explained that the initiative is part of a wider campaign led by popular and human rights movements across Italy, rejecting the political and military support provided by some European countries for the Israeli assault.

Since 2 March, Israel has failed to follow through with an agreement reached with Hamas involving a ceasefire and prisoner exchange. The Gaza crossings remain closed to humanitarian aid, leaving trucks full of supplies stranded at the border.