Gaza amputees face endless hardship amid blockade and medical shortages

Before the conflict, 24-year-old Shurouq Khaira trained for international track events, winning a national title in 2016. A shell that struck her family's Daraj neighbourhood home in November 2023 forced doctors to amputate her right leg below the knee, while her father also lost both legs. Now residing in a tent, she endures darkness, fear of falling and the challenge of navigating sand-filled streets on one leg.

Gaza’s health ministry says roughly 6,000 people have been amputated since the war began, a quarter of them children, making it the largest source of child amputees in recent history. Shortages of surgical supplies and prosthetic components, caused by Israeli import restrictions, have forced medical teams to rely on improvised devices that often cause further complications. Specialists warn that delayed rehabilitation worsens muscle atrophy and mental health, leaving amputees like Khaira in a painful, uncertain future.