Desperate Struggles of Gaza Doctors Amidst the Crisis: An Evacuee's Tale

Sat Oct 11 2025 22:35:37 GMT+0300 (Eastern European Summer Time)

Dr. Mohammed Abu Mughaisib, a medic evacuated from Gaza, reveals the dire conditions faced by healthcare workers and civilians as they battle starvation and overwhelming injuries amidst ongoing conflict.

Dr. Mohammed Abu Mughaisib, a medical practitioner with Médecins Sans Frontières, reflects on his harrowing experiences in Gaza where doctors struggle with starvation while treating injured civilians. Now evacuated to Ireland, he grapples with feelings of guilt for leaving his colleagues behind as they endure dire situations at hospitals under severe strain due to ongoing hostilities.

For two decades, Dr. Mohammed Abu Mughaisib dedicated his life to healing others, but in the grip of starvation, he was forced to make the difficult decision to leave Gaza. I would never have imagined starving, he reflected, recalling his utter exhaustion and extreme hunger.

Recently evacuated alongside scholarship students, Dr. Abu Mughaisib now finds himself in a peaceful Dublin park, contrasting sharply with the chaos he left behind. His memories of work in Gaza highlight the immense challenges faced by medical personnel. With dire shortages of food and supplies, he described grim conditions: doctors competing for scarce resources while treating malnutrition, and patients lying on the floor of overwhelmed hospitals.

I'm happy that I'm a survivor, he says, acknowledging the tragedy of leaving behind brave colleagues still amidst the horrors of conflict. As a key figure at Médecins Sans Frontières in Gaza, he witnessed firsthand the devastation wrought upon medical institutions, guiding efforts as hospitals became sites of desperation rather than healing.

Discussing the relentless influx of injured civilians, he paints a poignant picture of the bitter irony of doctors struggling for their own sustenance while attempting to save lives. Hospitals, overwhelmed with patients, faced unimaginable strain, leading to ethical dilemmas over which lives to prioritize in the chaos.

During his time in Gaza, Dr. Abu Mughaisib endured multiple displacements, navigating a complex landscape of fear and uncertainty as he treated the wounded in makeshift conditions. The physical toll manifested in lost weight and constant hunger as he fought to fulfill his mission of care.

Of the war’s staggering toll, more than 18,000 killed, over half are children, underscoring the critical humanitarian crisis within Gaza. With places of refuge becoming targets, Dr. Abu Mughaisib calls for global attention to the implausible struggles of his colleagues left behind.

Reflecting on his evacuation from Gaza, Dr. Abu Mughaisib expressed sorrow over the losses surrounding him—his family displaced, his home unrecognizable, filled with painful memories of what once was. He insists on the vast need for international support to begin the arduous healing process for those still in war-torn Gaza.