GAZA, (PIC) Standing between patient beds at Nasser Medical Complex, the last functioning medical facility in southern Gaza, is Amanda Nasser, an American nurse of Palestinian origin. She describes the grim reality of Gaza’s healthcare sector, which is collapsing under a continuous Israeli campaign she calls genocidal. She emphasizes that the effects of malnutrition and starvation have started to impact the medical staff themselves.
Since arriving in Gaza about a week ago, Nasser, 39, has been working in the emergency department, flooded with casualties and patients, particularly those suffering from complications due to malnutrition caused by Israel’s intensified siege, which blocks food, water, and medicine, the Anadolu Agency said.
Since 7 October 2023, with US support, Israel has been waging a genocidal war in Gaza, marked by killing, starvation, destruction, and forced displacement, ignoring international calls and rulings from the International Court of Justice to stop.
To date, Israeli actions have killed 61,897 Palestinians and injured 155,660, mostly women and children. By last Monday, Gaza’s health ministry reported that among the dead were approximately 18,430 children and 9,300 women, including 8,505 mothers.
Nasser, part of a humanitarian medical mission at Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Yunis, describes her experience as “deeply moving.” She characterizes the situation as catastrophic, warning that the healthcare system at the last functioning hospital in southern Gaza is near collapse.
“The medical resources are extremely scarce, and the healthcare staff are under enormous pressure and constant fear amid ongoing Israeli bombardments,” she told Anadolu. The overwhelming number of daily casualties, especially severe injuries, is placing unbearable strain on the teams.
“Most of the injuries we receive are severe and horrific: gunshot wounds to the head, chest, abdomen, pelvis, and limbs, in addition to complex fractures,” she adds. She notes that many of the injured are young teens to people in their early twenties, and their injuries are often fatal.
With limited medical equipment and personnel, doctors are forced to perform amputations and major surgeries, and unfortunately, not everyone receives treatment. The hospital’s resources are so limited that staff must make heartbreaking decisions, choosing who receives life-saving care like ventilators.
Despite the dire conditions, Nasser remains motivated and driven by her duty to assist, hoping to save as many lives as possible.
According to Gaza’s health officials, since October 2023, more than 18,000 people have been wounded needing rehabilitation, including 4,800 amputees, of whom 718 were children.
Gaza faces one of the worst humanitarian disasters in its history. Starvation is deeply interwoven with ongoing genocidal attacks.
Nasser describes the compounded suffering: medical staff and patients are worn thin by starvation. “Malnutrition is visible among patients… even the healthcare staff are gaunt and dehydrated, working long hours.” She reports witnessing infant deaths in the hospital due to food shortages.
By early 2025, Gaza’s Ministry of Health recorded approximately 28,000 cases of malnutrition, resulting in 239 deaths, including 106 children.
Nasser, proud of her Palestinian heritage, expressed gratitude for the warm hospitality she received despite the trauma and repeated displacements. She feels safe among the people she came to serve.
Her message to the world mixes sorrow with resolve: Gaza needs an immediate ceasefire and a free, independent Palestinian state. She called on journalists to keep amplifying the truth, and urged a boycott of US, European, and Israeli products that support the genocide.
