Gaza amputees turn to homemade prosthetics as war leaves thousands without medical care
With Gaza’s health system shattered by Israel’s war, Palestinians who lost limbs are turning to homemade prosthetics crafted from scrap materials to regain mobility and rebuild their lives.
Since October 2023, more than 42,000 Palestinians have suffered life-changing injuries, including around 6,000 amputations or severe limb and spinal wounds. Children now make up a quarter of all amputees, giving Gaza the highest number of child amputees per capita in the world, according to the International Rescue Committee, News.Az reports, citing Al Jazeera.
Among them is nine-year-old Rateb Abu Qaliq, who lost a leg when an Israeli strike hit his home, killing his mother and brother. Once active in sports, Rateb struggled after surgery, unable to join his friends.
That changed when his cousin Ahmed created a makeshift prosthetic using a sewage pipe and rope, cutting it to size so Rateb could play again. “Now he is happy and can do so many things,” Ahmed said.
Four-year-old Ahmad Sahlol also lost part of his arm after an Israeli tank shelled his family home in Khan Younis, one of thousands of children forced to adapt with minimal medical support.
Evacuations for treatment abroad have been extremely limited. The UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities reported in September that 21,000 Palestinian children have been newly disabled since the war began.
Father-of-four Ibrahim Abdel Nabi faced a similar struggle. Shot in the leg while queuing for food at a chaotic aid distribution site run by GHF, he later built a crude prosthetic from a pipe, wire, and nails. “I love life and I am fighting to continue living it,” he said.
Gaza’s medical facilities, supplies, and rehabilitation centers have been largely destroyed or cut off due to Israeli restrictions on aid. As a result, families are left to improvise solutions to basic mobility challenges.
Israel’s assault has killed more than 69,000 Palestinians and wounded over 170,000, leaving tens of thousands permanently disabled and without access to proper care.
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