UNITED NATIONS - More than 22,500 Palestinians – a quarter of those wounded in Gaza since Israel’s offensive began – have life-changing injuries, requiring rehabilitation services “now and for years to come”, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) reported Thursday. These include severe limb injuries, amputations, spinal cord trauma, traumatic brain injuries and major burns. Israeli forces pushed into Gaza in response to the 7 October 2023 attacks by Hamas and other Palestinian groups in southern Israel. Dr. Richard Peeperkorn, WHO Representative in the occupied Palestinian territory, highlighted that the surge in rehabilitation needs is occurring alongside the wholesale collapse of Gaza’s healthcare infrastructure. “Patients can’t get the care they need. Acute rehabilitation services are severely disrupted and specialized care for complex injuries is not available, placing patients’ lives at risk. Immediate and long-term support is urgently needed to address the enormous rehabilitation needs.” Services such as wound care, physical therapy, and psychological support are either inaccessible or entirely unavailable, leaving thousands at risk of further complications, disabilities or even death. According to the UN health agency, only 17 of Gaza’s 36 hospitals remain partially functional, primary healthcare and community-level services are frequently suspended, due to insecurity, attacks and repeated evacuation orders. Gaza’s only limb reconstruction and rehabilitation centre, located in the Nasser Medical Complex and supported by WHO, has been non-functional since December 2023 due to lack of supplies and staff, and was further damaged in a February 2024 raid. Additionally, the loss of trained physiotherapists due to the fighting between Israel and Hamas has further hampered rehabilitation efforts.
The figures, detailed in WHO’s analysis Estimating Trauma Rehabilitation Needs in Gaza using Injury Data from Emergency Medical Teams, reflect data as of 23 July.
Beyond the newly injured, tens of thousands of Palestinians already living with chronic conditions or impairments are now at heightened risk due to the collapse of critical services, WHO said.
As the hostilities continue, WHO emphasized the need for safe access to all essential health services, including rehabilitation, to prevent further suffering.
It renewed its call for an immediate ceasefire to facilitate aid, rebuild the health system and save lives.
The ongoing conflict has also left Gaza’s already fragile economy in ruins.