UN: 2500 Gaza Children at Imminent Risk of Death

By Staff Agencies

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for the urgent evacuation of 2,500 children injured during the 15-month-long "Israeli" war on Gaza to receive urgent medical treatment.

His appeal follows a meeting with US doctors who warned that the children face an "imminent risk of death" in the coming weeks.

The four doctors, who had volunteered in Gaza during the 15-month-long war on Gaza, described the dire state of the territory’s healthcare system, which has been severely affected by the ongoing war.

Guterres said he was “deeply moved” after his discussion with the US doctors on Thursday. “2,500 children must be immediately evacuated with the guarantee that they will be able to return to their families and communities,” he wrote on social media.

Just days before a ceasefire began on 19 January, the World Health Organization [WHO] reported that over 12,000 Palestinians were awaiting medical evacuations and had hoped for an increase in transfers during the truce.

 Feroze Sidhwa, a trauma surgeon from California who worked in Gaza from 25 March to 8 April last year, told reporters after meeting with Guterres, “There’s about 2,500 children who are at imminent risk of death in the next few weeks. Some are dying right now. Some will die tomorrow. Some will die the next day.”

Many of these children require relatively simple medical procedures, he said, pointing to the case of a three-year-old boy who suffered burns on his arm. While the burns had healed, the scar tissue was progressively restricting blood flow, putting him at risk of amputation.

Ayesha Khan, an emergency physician at Stanford University Hospital who worked in Gaza from late November until 1 January, highlighted the struggles of children who had undergone amputations but lacked access to prosthetics or rehabilitation.

Khan also detailed the complications preventing evacuations, noting that current security restrictions only allow children to travel with one caregiver.

The "Israeli" agency responsible for coordinating with Palestinian authorities 'Cogat', did not respond to requests for comment on Guterres’ call for the evacuation of the 2,500 children.

The doctors are advocating for a streamlined medical evacuation system with clear protocols. “Under this ceasefire agreement, there is supposed to be a mechanism in place for medical evacuations. We’ve still not seen that process spelled out,” said Thaer Ahmad, an emergency room doctor from Chicago who worked in Gaza in January 2024.