LONDON: Two Palestinian girls from the war-hit Gaza have arrived in the UK to receive medical treatment for serious health conditions.
According to the BBC, the girls Ghena, aged 5, and Rama, 12, are the first from Gaza to be granted temporary UK visas since the war between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas started on October 7, 2023.
They arrived from Egypt, where they have been living with complex conditions after Gaza’s healthcare system completely collapsed because of Israel’s invasion of the Palestinian enclave.
Rama, who has a serious bowel condition, previously lived in Khan Younis and told the BBC: “We were so scared. We were living in tents, and shrapnel from airstrikes used to fall on us.
“Mum used to suffer so much going to hospitals while bombs were falling and would stand in long queues just to get me a strip of pills. Here I’ll get treatment and get better and be just like any other girl.”
Her mother told the BBC: “I’m very happy for Rama because she’ll get treatment here. As a mother, I felt so sorry in Gaza because I couldn’t do anything to help her.
“To see your daughter dying in front of your eyes, day by day, watching her weaken and get sicker — it pained me.”
Ghena has a buildup of fluid putting pressure on her optic nerve, which could lead to blindness if not treated.
Her mother Haneen told the BBC: “Before the war, Ghena was having medical treatment in Gaza, in a specialised hospital. She was getting tests done every six months there and treatment was available.”
She said the hospital was destroyed in the first week of Israel’s military campaign, leaving the family with little choice but to seek help elsewhere.
The girls received support from Project Pure Hope and the Palestinian Children’s Relief Fund, which collaborated with the World Health Organisation to arrange their medical treatment in the UK.
PCRF Chairwoman Vivian Khalaf told the BBC: “We came across these cases through an ongoing list that is getting longer and longer of children who need urgent medical treatment outside of Gaza.
She stated that, so far, 200 children from Gaza have been sent abroad for medical treatment, with destinations including the US, Jordan, Qatar, and various European countries.
The WHO has denounced the state of Gaza’s health system as “beyond description” after 18 months of war that has killed more than 50,980 Palestinians according to its Health Ministry.
UNRWA’s Chief calls on Israel to end Gaza siege
The head of UN’s agency for the Palestinian refugees has said that Israel’s siege of Gaza is collectively punishing children, women, older people, and ordinary men in the Palestinian territory.
“They are collectively punished for being born and living in Gaza, something not of their making,” he said, adding that it has been two months since the siege started.
“The State of Israel must lift the siege and allow a flow of basic supplies,” Lazzarini also said.
