GAZA, (Palestine Foundation Information Center), Dr. Munir Al-Bursh, Director-General of the Palestinian Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip, said that the number of people with disabilities in the Strip has risen sharply as a result of the Israeli genocidal war, confirming an almost complete shortage of prosthetic limbs and support services.
Al-Bursh explained that disability in Gaza is not the result of illnesses or ordinary accidents, but a direct consequence of bombardment, explosions, and building collapses. He added that among the victims are children who lost their limbs before they were even able to take their first steps.
In an interview with Al Jazeera, Al-Bursh presented figures that illustrate the scale of the catastrophe: before the war, Gaza had around 55,000 people with disabilities, 53% of whom were male, and children made up 18% of the total.
But these numbers have risen to unprecedented levels after the Israeli war of genocide on the Strip, with more than 7,000 new disability cases recorded, according to data released by the International Committee of the Red Cross.
The Ministry of Health in Gaza announced in a press statement on Wednesday that 6,000 limb amputations have been recorded during two years of genocide, noting that the injured require “urgent and long-term” rehabilitation programs.
Al-Bursh revealed that 18,500 patients need to be transferred for treatment abroad, including 1,200 people with disabilities, but the Israeli occupation prevents them from accessing treatment by keeping the crossings closed, extinguishing their hope for survival.
He reminded that the Israeli occupation army destroyed prosthetics centers during its assault on Gaza, especially Hamad Hospital for Prosthetics, and simultaneously prevents prosthetic limbs from entering the Palestinian territory. He also noted that many of the specialists trained abroad at great effort to manufacture prosthetics were killed.
The Director-General pointed to an almost total shortage of prosthetic limbs in Gaza due to the Israeli occupation’s ban on allowing them into the Strip.
Al-Bursh added that more than 18% of the injured, 170,000 people, need long-term treatment and rehabilitation, a situation that requires decisive action from the international community.
On the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, the Gaza Ministry of Health said that shocking conditions plague amputee patients in the Strip, confirming that 6,000 amputees need urgent, long-term rehabilitation programs.
The ministry also revealed that 25% of all amputation cases are children who now face permanent disabilities at a very early age.
The ministry called on relevant international organizations to direct urgent attention toward amputee patients and to strengthen access to specialized and rehabilitative care.
According to data published by the World Health Organization in September 2025, “around 42,000 people in Gaza suffer from severe injuries requiring long-term rehabilitation programs.”
Restrictions on the entry of medicines, medical equipment, and fuel into the Gaza Strip have exacerbated the health conditions of the wounded and people with disabilities, turning many treatable injuries into permanent disabilities.
