GAZA, (PIC)
The child Sadeen Abu Daqah lies on a hospital bed, exhausted by the pain of burns that cover large parts of her body and took away one of her eyes. In the details of the horrific incident, like the suffering of all the children in Gaza, Sadeen’s mother says their home was hit by a missile from an Israeli drone on July 22, while they were gathering their belongings to evacuate the house in response to orders for a forced evacuation of the eastern areas of Khan Yunis.
The mother explains that Sadeen, 10, suffered severe burns all over her body and lost her left eye, pleading with the relevant authorities to facilitate her travel for treatment abroad, especially since hospitals in Gaza are experiencing a difficult situation due to systematic Israeli targeting.
She confirms that Sadeen can only walk with physical therapy, which is available at a minimal level for patients given the large number of injuries. While describing the situation in hospitals as catastrophic, the mother expresses her hope that her daughter will leave her sickbed and return to the vitality she once had when playing with her peers. She points out that the hospital has reduced the treatment solution she receives intravenously due to its depletion from the ministry because of the blockade imposed by Israel on certain types of medications and medical supplies, according to statements from the World Health Organization (WHO and Doctors Without Borders.
The mother emphasizes her child’s right to live like other children in the world, saying, “She is a very ambitious and educated girl; she knows what happened to her. When asked, she avoids answering; she does not want to believe what happened.”
Sadeen embraces her favorite toy as she quietly responds about what happened to her: “I lost my sight in my left eye, and it hurts a lot. I don’t want anything from the world; I just want my eye back. What did I do? I want to see with my eye again and stop hurting.”
She adds that she feels numbness in the areas affected by the burns and tries to follow the doctor’s instructions not to scratch them to avoid any complications. Sadeen dreams of becoming a teacher in the future and insists that she will not give up on this dream no matter what.
The doctor, Rima Al-Rais, removes the compression garments Sadeen is wearing and carefully examines the scars covering her injured arm and both legs. She suffered severe second-degree burns that damaged 50% of her skin’s surface area two months ago, and she needs close monitoring to prevent skin infections due to the high humidity.
The doctor notes that medical protocols require burn victims to be placed in a moderate climate, and when humidity and high temperatures occur in the summer, air conditioning units are turned on. “But this is not available due to fuel shortages, and the hospital management is trying to organize its use for operating rooms, which puts the injured in great suffering.”
According to official reports, more than 25,000 children have been killed or injured since the start of the genocidal war on Gaza on October 7, 2023, with thousands of them having limbs amputated or losing their eyes.
An analysis conducted by WHO on the types of injuries resulting from the war found that severe limb injuries, estimated to number between 13,455 and 17,550, are the primary factor leading to the need for rehabilitation, noting that many of the injured suffer from more than one injury. According to the report, the number of amputations ranged from 3,105 to 4,050. Significant increases in spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injuries, and severe burns contribute to the total number of life-altering injuries, affecting several thousand women and children.
Dr. Richard Piberkorn, WHO representative in the occupied Palestinian territories, states that there is a massive increase in rehabilitation needs occurring alongside the ongoing destruction of the health system. He adds in a report published by the organization on September 12: “Patients cannot access the care they need. Acute rehabilitation services are severely disrupted, and specialized care for those with complex injuries is unavailable, putting patients’ lives at risk. There is an urgent need for immediate and long-term support to meet the enormous rehabilitation needs,” expressing regret that “a large part of the rehabilitation workforce in Gaza is now displaced.”
The WHO emphasizes that adherence to a burn treatment plan is crucial, “but it poses a significant challenge for the injured in Gaza, where a lack of sanitation due to insufficient clean water and sewage increases the risk of infections and antibiotic resistance. Many of our patients also lack proper nutrition or suffer from accompanying illnesses that delay healing.” The organization warns that burn injuries leave long-term psychological and physical effects on the wounded, often requiring prolonged hospital stays and months of follow-up care to prevent deformities, explaining that the health system in Gaza is unable to provide this type of care amid the ongoing war.
