Disability pandemic sweeps the sector

Director of Hospitals Marwan Al-Hamas to “Y”: More than 25 thousand disabled people in the sector

Gaza Strip has the highest number of children with disabilities in the world

Most of the injuries resulted in amputation of the lower limbs and most of the children lost their feet.

Lack of equipment and devices, no wheelchairs or crutches

"If my needs are not met, I will die," said Mohammed Al-Dhani, a young man with disabilities, as he began to narrate his suffering in light of the lack of his basic needs due to the ongoing Israeli war on the Gaza Strip.

Yesterday, the Palestinian NGO Network organized a press conference for people with disabilities on their international day, which is held on December 3 of each year.

In a wheelchair, Mohammed was present at the conference, hoping that his voice would reach the whole world. He told “I” and “Al-Quds” Dot Com: “The war has greatly affected my health, and I have begun to suffer from several problems, the most important of which is the kidney.”

"Every minute that passes, I have a problem," he adds.

The suffering is not limited to health problems only, but Muhammad also suffers from the lack of his basic needs as a young man who has suffered from a motor disability since birth.

He added: "I need diapers, but I don't have any and they are unavailable in the market. Even if they are available, their price is very high and I cannot afford to buy them."

He added: "This is the second year during the war that I celebrate the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, and we go out and hold sit-ins, but in vain no one is looking at our cause."

Mohammed called on all institutions concerned with people with disabilities to provide their basic needs more widely.

He also called on the entire world to look at people with disabilities in a positive and humane way, in order to open the crossings and evacuate them abroad to receive appropriate treatment.

On the other side, the young woman, Bahiya Al-Shaghnouni, sits in a wheelchair, demanding to travel abroad to complete her treatment.

She told Al-Quds.com: “My treatment has been suspended since the war began, and I am currently not receiving any type of treatment.”

Bahiya suffered a spinal fracture, leaving her bedridden and wheelchair-bound.

She continues: “Before the war, I was following up with physical therapy specialists, and I was receiving my treatment at the appropriate time.” She adds with frustration: “It has been two years since I received treatment. I wish I could travel and receive treatment abroad.”

In turn, the director of field hospitals in the Gaza Strip, Marwan Al-Hamas, told Al-Quds.com: “More than 25,000 people have been disabled since the beginning of the war, especially children, as the largest disability among children in the world is the children of Gaza.”

He added: "Most of the injuries result in amputation for children, especially their lower limbs. Some of them lose their feet below the knee, and the vast majority lose their feet above the knee."

Al-Hamas explained that people with disabilities suffer from a lack of special devices and tools, adding: “There are no wheelchairs or crutches to lean on, not to mention the lack of electric carts for those suffering from hemiplegia.”

He stressed that the Israeli occupation is deliberately killing them slowly, by preventing the entry of any devices that help people with disabilities, noting that they are also deprived of traveling to receive treatment.