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British charity UK-Med, which runs the field hospital where Ahmad has been treated, is warning of the ‘disastrous’ impact of rains as the winter bites in war-torn Gaza.
His injured leg bandaged, little Ahmad lays in hospital watching a cartoon — a dose of relief amid the never-ending horror of war in Gaza.
Behind him on the wall, the nine-year-old’s artwork shows a building like the apartment block he once called home before it was destroyed. And now, to compound his family’s misery, the devastating weather has claimed their latest residence… a makeshift beach tent.
British charity UK-Med, which runs the field hospital where Ahmad has been treated, is warning of the “disastrous” impact of rains as the winter bites. After enduring over a year of conflict sparked by Hamas’ October 7 attack against Israel, Gaza’s population has to battle the weather too. NHS nurse Mandy Blackman, the charity’s field hospital lead who is from Northamptonshire, said: “The recent rains are disastrous for people in Gaza. Our hospital is right next to the shoreline, and everyday we see the impact of the cold and rain.
“The roads have turned into quagmires, people’s tents are being flooded or completely washed away by the sea – this is affecting not only the community around us, but also our Palestinian staff, who are living in the same conditions as the people they come into work to help. It’s just one ordeal after another. As healthcare workers it leaves us in a difficult position, because ideally we don’t want to discharge people who have nowhere else to go, or who will go back to living in dangerously fragile tents that could get swept away by the sea.”
Over 1.6million people living in makeshift shelters across the stricken enclave are estimated to be affected by heavy rains, according to the UN. UK-Med’s field hospital has a small stock of art supplies in the paediatric ward which have been put to good use. Another of Ahmad’s drawings conveys his gratitude to those who have cared for him. It shows a series of balloons, each carrying the name next to it of a nurse or doctor who treated him.
And his pink heart-shaped note shows how he longs for normality. The keen artist wrote: “I wish I could go back to before [when] I could walk and play football and I want to return to Gaza [City].”
His family was first displaced from Gaza City to Rafah, then again in June to the Khan Younis region where they sheltered in a tent pitched on the sand. He lived there with mum Neveen, 28, dad Ghanim, 35, and siblings Hala, 12, Mara, 11, Adam, 8, and two-year-old Misk.
But while out shopping at the local market with his sister Hala on November 10, Ahmad was hit by a bus from behind. An ambulance rushed him to UK-Med’s Al Mawasi field hospital. Plastic surgeon Dr Kevin Beshlian, who operated on Ahmad, said: “… his leg was caught and dragged. It pulled all the skin off his right leg from the knee to the top of his foot, and broke his left foot too – it was a significant injury. There was a lot of sand and dirt in the wound, so we took him directly to the operating theatre to clean the wound and preserve whatever skin we could.”
Mum Neveen, who rushed to be by her son’s side, told how matters got even worse for the family days ago. She said: “…my husband called me to say that our tent had flooded – it was only made of wood, tarpaulin, and bedsheets. It was a disaster, the water from the rain and the waves from the sea had swept under the walls and ruined the tent. All our clothes, bedsheets, mattresses, rugs, kitchen supplies, everything was ruined. The sand and mud were everywhere. I was so upset.”
The family is now scattered after their makeshift home was ruined. She and her eldest daughter stay at the field hospital with Ahmad. Her husband and youngest are with his relatives, one child with Neveen’s mum and another with an aunt.
A UN humanitarian situation update this week warned “thousands of displaced families living in tents along the coast in southwest Gaza [are] being particularly affected by flooding and rising seawater”. It added: “According to preliminary assessments by humanitarian partners, about 7,000 families residing along the shoreline were affected by recent rains, with thousands of tents flooded, belongings destroyed and shelters damaged. This has been particularly the case in the Al Mawasi area, which hosts several hundred thousands of displaced people.”
About 1,200 people were killed in Hamas’ October 7 attack on Israel. Large parts of Gaza have been destroyed by Israel during the war. Over 44,000 people have been killed and more than 104,000 wounded, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.
UK-Med says Ahmad will be referred to Nasser Hospital for further treatment and skin grafts. But for Neveen, the future is uncertain. “If my son is discharged, I won’t know where to go,” she said. “We still haven’t found another place to stay, and winter is here. December is the worst month for the cold and rain… If Ahmad is in a tent in this condition, it will be awful for him over winter because of the cold and the risk of infection. I’m so afraid for my children.”
To donate to UK-Med’s Middle East Crisis Appeal, please visit: https://www.uk-med.org/middle-east-crisis-appeal/