We do not carry weapons, but bandages and hope to save lives: Gaza doctor

By Alireza Akbari

A surgeon from northern Gaza says doctors in the besieged and war-ravaged territory are working amid relentless Israeli bombings to save Palestinian lives.

In an interview with the Press TV website, Hussam Hammouda, a general surgery resident at the Indonesian Hospital in Beit Lahiya, conveyed a message from Gaza doctors to the world that despite the ongoing genocide, they remain committed to serving their people with dedication.

“We do not carry weapons. We carry bandages and hope. We work under bombardment and among ruins to save lives,” said the 29-year-old doctor, describing the extremely dire conditions as Gaza’s healthcare system has been largely reduced to rubble amid the genocidal war.

The death toll from the ongoing genocidal war against Palestinians in Gaza, launched in October 2023, has crossed 52,200, with nearly 118,000 others injured, according to local health authorities.

Hammouda described the systematic Israeli assaults on hospitals and medical centers across the coastal Palestinian territory since October 2023.

“Since the beginning of the assault, dozens of hospitals and medical centers have been directly targeted, including Al-Shifa Hospital, Al-Aqsa Hospital, the Indonesian Hospital, and the Emirati Field Hospital,” he told the Press TV website.

According to the Government Media Office, as of April 18, 2025, Israeli forces have targeted 38 hospitals, 81 health centers, and 164 health institutions, leaving 144 ambulances out of service.

Hammouda, who studied medicine in Ukraine, urged the international community to raise their voices in support of Gaza’s doctors who are working under extremely challenging conditions. 

“We call on you to raise your voices, to demand the protection of medical staff and hospitals,” he said.

His appeal comes amid reports that 362 health workers have been arrested by Israeli occupation forces, including three doctors executed under torture in Israeli prisons.

Among them was the prominent Palestinian surgeon, Dr. Adnan Bursh.

Many like Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, a paediatrician and neonatologist who served as the director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in the Gaza Strip, have been languishing in Israeli prisons. 

Hammouda also addressed the misinformation being spread about Gaza’s hospitals, mainly by the Israeli and American media outlets, as part of a campaign to discredit the resistance. 

“There is widespread misinformation justifying the targeting of hospitals. However, the reality on the ground confirms that these medical facilities served solely as shelters and treatment centers for civilians,” he told the Press TV website.

In late October 2023, Israeli military spokesman Daniel Hagari claimed that the Gaza-based resistance movement Hamas had established its main headquarters beneath Al-Shifa Hospital.

Less than three weeks later, on November 15, Israeli forces raided the hospital. According to the Gaza Health Ministry, at least 24 patients died at the facility over 48 hours following the Israeli raid.

Hammouda also called for international pressure on the Israeli regime to cease its “assault” on Gaza and to lift the crippling and illegal blockade on the strip, which has lasted for over seven weeks now.

The Israeli blockade has weaponized food, medicine, and essential aid, pushing the strip to the brink of famine, according to aid groups and human rights activists.

The ongoing blockade has severely deteriorated health conditions across Gaza. According to local reports, 71,338 cases of hepatitis infections have been recorded due to forced displacement.

Approximately 60,000 pregnant women are at risk due to the collapse of healthcare services, and around 350,000 chronic patients face life-threatening conditions due to Israel’s ban on medicine entry.

The young Palestinian surgeon also warned about the heavy cost of international inaction and indifference in the face of Israeli genocidal campaign in Gaza.  

“The world’s silence is killing us — your solidarity can help save what remains,” he said.

With the Israeli genocide in Gaza continuing unabated, 12,500 cancer patients are now at risk due to the collapse of healthcare services, and 3,000 patients with various illnesses require urgent treatment.

According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, more than 2,136,026 cases of infectious diseases have been recorded, largely as a result of forced displacement.

However, despite these overwhelming challenges, the young surgeon said that “love for the homeland” and “commitment to serving people” remain the driving forces behind Gaza’s medical personnel continuing their work under extreme danger.

He also warned of the dire shortage of essential medical supplies across the Gaza Strip, noting the lack of “medications and antibiotics to surgical and intensive care equipment.”

Doctors, he said, are often forced to use tools not intended for surgery and to improvise with alternative materials due to the total blockade and the prevention of medical aid from entering the territory.

According to Hammouda, the few healthcare facilities still functioning are operating far beyond their capacity, equipped with only the basic tools and facing a severe lack of medications and supplies.

Given the widespread and delibrate targeting of hospitals, whether directly or indirectly, and the ongoing siege, Hammouda stressed that Gaza’s health sector “is nearly collapsing.”