Gaza Herald — As Gaza’s shattered healthcare system struggles to survive under the weight of genocide, Israel continues to target the very people keeping the wounded alive. What remains of Gaza’s medical infrastructure is collapsing, not only from relentless bombardment, but from the systematic abduction, torture, and silencing of Palestinian doctors.
In contrast, foreign medical volunteers are blocked from entering altogether. The result is a deliberate policy designed to ensure that Gaza’s sick and injured are left without any chance of survival.
Israel is continuing to detain Palestinian medical staff kidnapped from Gaza, while simultaneously refusing entry to international doctors seeking to provide emergency treatment during the so-called ceasefire.
The occupation has declined to free doctors abducted during its genocidal assault, including Kamal Adwan Hospital’s pediatric director, Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, who was seized nearly a year ago after Israeli forces stormed the hospital, destroyed most of its facilities, and executed numerous members of its medical staff. Abu Safiya has since been subjected to severe abuse inside an Israeli prison, beaten, starved, and tortured repeatedly.
Another prominent figure, Dr. Marwan al-Hams, director of a field hospital, was taken by Israeli forces in July. Just last week, soldiers abducted his daughter Tasneem, a nurse, adding to the growing list of medical workers targeted simply for providing care.
At the same time, Israel has barred international volunteer doctors from re-entering Gaza to assist the wounded and starving. Surgeons Victoria Rose and Graeme Groome recently described how Israeli authorities refused to allow them back into the Strip, despite the collapse of Gaza’s healthcare system and the urgent need for medical teams.
Israel’s campaign has already killed more than 1,500 healthcare workers, many of whom were tortured to death while in custody. Over 350 Palestinian medical personnel remain disappeared inside Israeli prisons, facing inhumane treatment, constant violence, and denial of medical care. Meanwhile, the occupation has destroyed or severely damaged every hospital in Gaza, leaving millions without functioning medical facilities.
Medical experts warn that more than 400 people in Gaza are now dying every day from preventable causes, hunger, dehydration, untreated wounds, and widespread disease, all exacerbated by the deliberate targeting of doctors, nurses, and hospitals.
The refusal to release abducted Palestinian doctors, combined with the blockade on foreign medical teams, exposes a clear and calculated strategy: to eliminate Gaza’s capacity to heal itself. By dismantling the medical sector and persecuting its workers, Israel is ensuring that the suffering of Palestinians deepens even during a supposed ceasefire. As Gaza’s wounded continue to die without treatment, the world must confront an undeniable truth: this is not merely a war on a population, but a war on life itself.
