Into the Gaze of an Orphan in Gaza
Amidst Gaza's devastating airstrikes, courageous medical volunteers in a field hospital fight to save lives, amidst the chaos and despair A heart-wrenching glimpse into the horror of modern warfare, where hope and resilience prevail against all odds
Amir Taha, 20 months old, lays quietly on the bed with his fluffy hair sticking up and a raw, jagged wound across his forehead. His aunt sadly explains that he is now an orphan, having lost his parents and two siblings in an Israeli strike during the devastating war on Hamas in Gaza. This strike was in response to cross-border raids carried out by militants targeting Israeli civilians on October 7.
Amir, 20 months old, is too young to understand he's now an orphan.
The loss of Amir contributes to the already devastating human casualties in Gaza, with the Hamas-run Ministry of Health reporting over 18,000 fatalities in the small territory.
“He doesn't know yet,” his aunt Nehaia Al-Qadra told CNN. “He is too young to understand.”
"They found Amir in his mother's arms laying in the street," Al-Qadra said. "His sister died, his brother died, his uncle, and his other sister is injured in the hospital... Here we are, he doesn't have a mother or a father or an older sister or brother. Now it's just us two and God."
Horror of modern warfare
Amir longs for his father. "Yesterday, he saw a nurse who resembled his dad, and he couldn't stop shouting Dad! Dad! Dad!" Al-Qadra shared. To soothe him, she plays a video of his father for the toddler.
Amir is receiving treatment at a field hospital in Rafah, southern Gaza, established by the United Arab Emirates government. The local hospitals are unable to provide adequate care due to being overwhelmed or damaged, making the UAE facility a rare, well-equipped and well-staffed option for those with serious medical needs.
Dr. Abdallah Al-Naqbi checks on toddler Amir and his wounds.
CNN had the opportunity to observe their work during a brief visit this week, making them the first Western media outlet to gain access to southern Gaza for independent reporting. Israel and Egypt had previously made it extremely difficult for international journalists to witness the impact on civilians firsthand. The Israeli military had previously taken American media, including CNN, on brief escorted trips into northern Gaza.
The streets are filled with debris and litter from demolished buildings, offering a grim glimpse into the realities of modern warfare. Despite the relentless barrage, people aimlessly roam the streets, appearing almost zombie-like as they grapple with their circumstances or simply try to pass the time. Many storefronts are shuttered, but there is a lengthy queue forming outside a bakery. The stagnant water left behind by recent rain is a stark contrast to the freezing December air.
Rafah was supposed to be in a safe zone at the beginning of the war but has since come under Israeli attacks.
Scott McWhinnie/CNN
It changes your heart
In another area of the field hospital, eight-year-old Jinan Sahar Mughari is confined to a full body cast. "Our house was bombed first, and then the house in front of us," she recounted to CNN. "I was beside my grandfather, and he shielded me. My uncle was unharmed, so he helped us out."
Jinan Sahar Mughari was sitting next to her grandfather when her house was hit and her leg was crushed.
Scott McWhinnie/CNN
Jinan's mother, Hiba Mohammed Mughari, explains that Jinan suffered a broken skull and leg during the bombing. The mother was not at home during the attack, and went to the hospital to find her injured daughter. Overcome with emotion, Hiba encourages Jinan to speak as tears silently stream down her face.
Doctors at the UAE Field Hospital say they find seeing and treating the innocent child victims of war especially hard, but they are so busy they cannot dwell on it.
15th November 2023, Khan Yunis, Palestinian Territories: Palestinian civilians seek refuge at a school operated by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in Khan Yunis, after fleeing the northern Gaza Strip due to the threat of Israeli airstrikes. Photo credit: Mohammed Talatene/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images
We have the right to exist. The survival of displaced civilians in Gaza is threatened by starvation, disease, and harsh winter conditions. "It's something that touches your heart," stated Dr. Ahmed Almazrouei, reflecting on the sight of injured children.
Dr. Abdallah Al-Naqbi, the medical director of the hospital, expressed, "These individuals are clearly civilians who should not have to suffer the loss of a limb while simply spending time with their families."
The hospital was built quickly within a soccer stadium, but its staff and top-notch equipment have made its 150 beds in high demand. Al-Naqbi also mentioned, "The local community has urged us to focus our services on those with severe injuries, as they are the ones in desperate need and cannot afford to wait."
A calm amid the airstrikes
The volunteer medics are available around the clock and put in extended hours. "Yesterday we began at three in the morning. Four injuries. No amputations, but burns. Burns are more severe than amputations," Al-Naqbi stated. "And we remained awake until late afternoon."
Dealing with trauma victims is a crucial aspect of the medics' work during the mission, known as "Operation Gallant Knight 3." However, they are also witnessing the fallout of the collapsing local health systems and the adverse effects of poor, overcrowded conditions, which are contributing to the spread of infectious diseases and other challenges within communities.
Gaza residents wander around their ruined streets full of rubble, stagnant water and trash.
Scott McWhinnie/CNN
"An individual arrived with a head injury and worms emerging from the wound," Al-Naqbi reported. "We cannot determine the type of environment they were exposed to, and medically I cannot underscore how unsanitary the situation was. Even our surgeon was taken aback."
Within the hospital, there is an almost serene atmosphere, with well-coordinated staff dutifully tending to their patients in wards, intensive care units, and operating rooms. However, the impact of war is constantly felt.
Notes smeared with blood
After CNN arrived, a nearby airstrike could be heard within 15 minutes. Despite the loud crack, the doctors remained unfazed. "That's real life," Al-Naqbi commented, noting that they are accustomed to hearing at least 20 strikes a day. "I think we got used to it."
The sanctuary offers no clue about the target - whether it was a Hamas target or a civilian home or business. Regardless, they quickly receive word that there are victims in need of immediate treatment.
"They just contacted us and informed us that they will be sending two young males who have been amputated in the bombing," Al-Naqbi said, rushing to the "Red Area" where new trauma patients are received.
BEIT LAHIA, GAZA - NOVEMBER 19: This photo shows the devastated infant intensive care unit of Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahia, Gaza after being targeted by the Israeli army on November 19, 2023. (Photo by Abdulqader Sabbah/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Anadolu/Anadolu/Getty Images/FILE
Gaza healthcare workers taken by Israeli forces, says doctor, amid horrendous conditions at hospitals
"We are a team of experienced emergency doctors and ICU consultants," he later explained, recounting the team's experiences at home. "We have dealt with trauma, but it usually comes through our EMS (emergency medical services) in a clean, organized manner, complete with a proper chart."
The notes provided by the paramedics who brought in a man and a 13-year-old boy, both with missing limbs, are stained with blood.
The world isnt listening
Both patients are severely injured, and the medical teams are racing against the clock to replace the makeshift tourniquets made of bandages. "Not one of the patients arrived with a correctly applied tourniquet," Al-Naqbi noted, emphasizing the crucial importance of effectively stopping blood loss in order to save lives.
The reason for this is that the patients are from the devastated Gaza that we saw on our 2.8-mile (4.5-kilometer) drive from the Egyptian border to the hospital and back.
According to the Israeli military, since October 7, it has targeted over 22,000 sites in Gaza - an enclave just about 25 miles long and seven miles wide - surpassing anything seen in modern warfare in terms of intensity and ferocity.
Nearly all of Gaza's 2 million residents have been displaced, according to the World Health Organization. Israel's operations to dismantle Hamas and rescue over 100 hostages have targeted both the northern and southern areas of the territory. Despite international calls for a ceasefire, a young patient in the Emirati field hospital expressed doubts about whether anyone truly cared.
Lama Ali Hassan Alloush and her family followed orders to leave northern Gaza and seek shelter in the south. But then their shelter was struck and she lost her right leg.
At 20 years old, Lama Ali Hassan Alloush was studying engineering and planning for her sister's wedding before the war. Following orders from the Israeli military, her family left their northern home and sought refuge in the south. Sadly, the house they were sheltering in was hit by a strike, resulting in Lama being hospitalized and having her right leg amputated.
"The world isnt listening to us," she said. "Nobody cares about us, we have been dying for over 60 days, dying from the bombing, and nobody did anything."
