In Gaza, the tragedy does not end with the bombing. For many survivors, the true nightmare begins after the blast, particularly for those suffering from burns—injuries now among the most common, largely caused by internationally banned weapons deployed by Israeli forces. With the healthcare system shattered and medical supplies cut off, treating such injuries has become almost impossible, turning individual suffering into a collective wound.

Doctors Without Borders warned that burn injuries in Gaza have become “long-term sentences of pain,” exacerbated by the collapse of medical infrastructure after nearly 19 months of relentless Israeli attacks. Many patients, including children, suffer burns covering up to 40% of their bodies, often without access to basic pain relief. The ongoing blockade has left hospitals without the most essential medicines, forcing thousands to endure unimaginable agony.

Since the resumption of the genocide in March 2025, Gaza’s hospitals have reported a sharp rise in burn cases—over 100 new patients, the majority of them children under five. Nasser Hospital, Gaza’s largest remaining medical facility, has performed over 1,000 burn surgeries since May 2024, yet supplies of antibiotics, anaesthetics, and even basic dressings have been depleted for more than 50 days.

Doctors Without Borders stated that nearly half the burn patients they have treated are now unable to continue their care, trapped by the collapse of services and the dangerous conditions outside. In the words of one young survivor, 20-year-old Jumana Isaid, who lies in critical condition after an Israeli strike, “I cannot sleep at night. I cry and scream from the pain, but there is no medicine to help me.”

Dr Ahmad Abu Warda, working at a makeshift field hospital, described the horror: “Children beg us to stop when we remove the cloth stuck to their burnt skin. We have no painkillers, no supplies. What we are doing now isn’t healing—it’s fighting to delay death.”