No Anesthesia, No Aid, No Mercy: A Mother’s Journey Through Gaza’s Collapsing Health System

By Nour Dawood

Last week, my son Khaled cut his finger and urgently needed stitches. I wrapped his small hand in a clean piece of cloth and carried him through the shattered streets of Gaza City. Our first stop was Al-Shifa Hospital.

The hospital was a scene of chaos and bloodbath.

The emergency room overflowed, bodies lay on mats in the hallways, some barely moving, some not moving at all. The moans, the shouted names, the rush of gurneys made my voice almost vanish when I pleaded…