SAFA- The pavement outside Hamad Hospital for Prosthetics in northern Gaza offers a stark reminder of the human cost of the Israeli genocide.

Standing there is Deeb Abu Salem, 57, alongside his eldest son, Yasser, 26. Both lost limbs in separate Israeli attacks.

"We were at home, sitting near the trees, and suddenly we found ourselves lying in the street without our legs," Deeb says quietly as he recounts to Safa News Agency the two airstrikes that transformed his family's life.

"My wife and two of my children were injured in the attacks, along with Yasser."

The family's suffering is compounded by the imprisonment of another of Deeb's sons in Israeli custody.

A Family's Daily Struggle

Watching his two youngest sons drag heavy sacks of recyclable materials from the rubble, Deeb says the burden of supporting the family has fallen on children who should still be in school.

"The child who was once holding a pen and studying is now collecting plastic and scrap metal just to buy food for me," he says.

"The hardest thing for a father is to see his children living like this while you cannot even walk or afford a proper crutch to lean on."

Losing the Family's Provider

Deeb says losing his own leg was devastating, but seeing his eldest son suffer the same fate was even more painful.

"When my leg was amputated after the first bombing, my only comfort was that Yasser was there to carry me," he recalls.

"But when he lost his leg as well, it felt as though my back had been broken twice."

Once the family's main provider, Yasser now lives with a disability alongside his father, leaving both dependent on one another.

Children Forced to Become Breadwinners

The family's two youngest children now collect and sell scrap materials from destroyed buildings, earning only enough to cover the family's most basic needs.

The Abu Salem family's story reflects a wider crisis across the Gaza Strip. According to medical reports, more than 15,000 amputations have been recorded since the war began, while most survivors remain without access to rehabilitation services or prosthetic limbs.

Poverty in Gaza has climbed above 90 percent, with unemployment approaching 80 percent following the widespread destruction of businesses and the local economy.

Looking toward the prosthetics hospital standing just meters away, Deeb sums up his ordeal:

"The hospital is right in front of me, and the prosthetic limbs are only a few meters away. But the crossings remain closed. Our pain keeps growing, and all we are asking for is a chance to walk again."