Gaza Herald – On a worn-out sidewalk inside a displacement shelter in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza, 10-year-old Rateb Abu Qaliq sits leaning on battered crutches, while beneath his body he secures a plastic pipe he has turned into a temporary substitute for his amputated leg, a small attempt to resist a tragedy far greater than his age.
Rateb never imagined that the airstrike that hit Khan Younis in southern Gaza would take away his leg, his mother, and his brother all at once, leaving him alone to face a life that had completely changed overnight.
From School Desks to a Journey of Pain
Before the war, Rateb was like any other child. He went to school, played in the narrow streets, and dreamed of a simple and safe future. But the bombing that struck a nearby car while he was heading to his grandfather’s home in Khan Younis transformed his childhood into a long chain of pain and loss.
His grandmother, Fatima Abu Qaliq, who now takes care of him after the killing of his mother and brother, says her grandson’s life “was turned upside down” from that moment on.
“He was a bright child who loved life,” she says sadly. “He used to run and play all the time. Today, he drags a plastic pipe in place of his leg and tries to convince himself that he can still play and live like other children.”
The War Stole Part of Him
His uncle, Mohammad Abu Qaliq, recalls the moments that changed the child’s fate forever, explaining that Rateb was standing near the targeted vehicle when the strike happened.
“Rateb survived by a miracle, but he lost his leg, while his mother and brother were killed in the same attack,” he says.
He explains that the collapse of Gaza’s healthcare system and the suffocating Israeli blockade have deprived the child of any real chance for treatment or access to a prosthetic limb that could help him regain part of his life.
Instead of a medical prosthetic, Rateb now struggles to adapt using a plastic water pipe attached beneath his body, moving across the harsh roads of displacement camps with the help of crutches.
A Repeated Tragedy Across Gaza
Rateb’s story is only one among thousands reflecting the scale of the humanitarian catastrophe endured by children under Israel’s war on Gaza.
According to estimates by the World Health Organization, between 5,000 and 6,000 Palestinians have suffered limb amputations during the genocide, with children making up nearly 25% of the cases.
Those injured face enormous challenges adjusting to their new lives amid a severe shortage of prosthetic limbs and manufacturing supplies, in addition to the slow pace of medical evacuations.
Dreaming of a Prosthetic Leg
Despite the pain accompanying every step, Rateb still clings to what remains of his childhood. He watches other children running and tries to imitate them with his crutches.
Today, his greatest dream is simple: to receive a prosthetic leg that could return to him part of the life stolen by Israeli occupation missiles.
