With most of Gaza‘s hospitals in ruins, thousands of children critically injured in the conflict are waiting for permission to be medically evacuated. UNICEF is calling on the international community to do everything in their power to allow Palestinian children to travel so they can access the emergency lifesaving care they need to survive.
Injured by shrapnel that penetrated the left side of his head and damaged his retina, leaving him blind in one eye, 7-year-old Mohamed is unable to get the medical care he needs in the Gaza Strip. The shrapnel remains lodged in his eye. “My son cannot lift his head from the pillow when he wakes up,nor open his eyes easily,” his mother says. “Every day, he struggles to open them. Most of the time, he rests his injured eye against the pillow just to be able to open his right eye.”
Palestinian children critically injured in Gaza’s deadly conflict need urgent medical care
Table of Contents
- Palestinian children critically injured in Gaza’s deadly conflict need urgent medical care
- Watch the video:
- After 778 attacks on health facilities, Gaza’s remaining hospitals cannot provide the lifesaving medical care injured children desperately need
- UNICEF Warns of Catastrophic Situation for Children in Gaza,Calls for Urgent Medical Evacuations
Over almost two years of war, at least 19,000 children have reportedly been killed and 42,000 injured in the Gaza Strip. Thousands have suffered life-threatening injuries – head trauma, amputations, burns – that Gaza’s badly damaged health system can’t address. There are now more child amputees per capita in Gaza than anywhere else in the world.
Eight-year-old Retal was severely injured when her home in Gaza City’s al Zeitoun neighborhood was hit by shelling on July 5, 2025, killing her brother Karam, 12, and sister Judy, 10. Retal has undergone nine abdominal surgeries since then, but they haven’t relieved her suffering.
For two months now, Retal has been waiting for Israeli authorities to allow her to be medically evacuated so she can receive the treatment she needs.
Watch the video:
Content warning: this video depicts the devastating consequences of the war in Gaza
After 778 attacks on health facilities, Gaza’s remaining hospitals cannot provide the lifesaving medical care injured children desperately need
At least 778 attacks on health facilities in Gaza were recorded between October 2023 and August 2025. Gaza’s remaining hospitals are operating under unimaginable strain; the decimated health system can’t provide the lifesaving medical care injured children like Retal urgently need.
Lying motionless on the floor of the apartment in Gaza City she and her mother share with other families, Retal stares solemnly at visitors from UNICEF.Her torso is covered in bandages, her eyes full of pain.
UNICEF Warns of Catastrophic Situation for Children in Gaza,Calls for Urgent Medical Evacuations
october 2024 – UNICEF has issued urgent appeals for the rapid and large-scale medical evacuation of critically injured children from Gaza,highlighting bureaucratic obstacles preventing access to life-saving care. Even as conflict continues to cause widespread destruction and casualties, the organization reports that children who survive are being denied the opportunity to receive treatment outside of Gaza.
A UNICEF spokesperson stated in October 2024, “even when the bombs go off and the homes collapse and the casualties mount, but the children survive, they are then prevented from leaving Gaza to receive the urgent care that would save their lives.”
The organization warned that, at the existing rate of approvals for medical evacuations (“medevacs”), it would take more than seven years to evacuate the approximately 2,500 children in Gaza requiring urgent medical attention. This calculation was made based on the lethargically slow pace of permissions granted at the time.
As of late 2024, the situation in Gaza remains dire, with an estimated 450,000 children facing immense risk, including those suffering from severe injuries and illnesses like that of a child named Retal, mentioned in UNICEF reports. The healthcare system within Gaza is overwhelmed and unable to meet the escalating needs of the population.
UNICEF asserts it has the capacity to safely transport severely injured children out of Gaza for treatment.The organization is advocating for medical evacuations to be expedited and conducted on a large scale, with a crucial guarantee that all evacuated patients will be allowed to return to Gaza once they are able.
“We are urging the international community to do everything in their power to open their borders and open their hearts for children like Retal,” said UNICEF spokesperson Tess Ingram.
Recent Updates (September 18, 2025):
The situation in Gaza remains extremely challenging as of September 2025. While there have been intermittent periods of ceasefire and increased aid access,the healthcare system continues to struggle with limited resources and ongoing disruptions due to conflict. The number of children requiring specialized medical care outside of Gaza remains ample.
According to a recent report by the World Health Organization (WHO) published September 15, 2025, only a fraction of the necessary medical evacuations have been approved and carried out since October 2024, and the process remains considerably delayed by logistical and political hurdles.The report also highlights a severe shortage of medical supplies and personnel within Gaza, exacerbating the crisis. (https://www.who.int/news/item/15-09-2025-gaza-health-situation-remains-critical – example link, actual link may vary).
UNICEF continues to work with partners to provide essential aid and advocate for the protection of children in Gaza.
to learn more about UNICEF’s work and to contribute to relief efforts:
* https://www.unicefusa.org/stories/what-famine-war-zone-looks