Gaza: ‘She survived the bombing, but not the blockade’

After two years of bombardment and forced displacement during Israel ’s genocide in Gaza , Suhaila al-Mabhouh had one wish: to go home. The 60-year-old Palestinian longed so desperately to return to her family home in northern Gaza that she turned down an evacuation offer to Italy, submitted by her daughter, who lives there. When the so-called ceasefire took effect on 10 October 2025, she and her husband rushed back to their home in Jabalia refugee camp. She began making small repairs to the badly damaged house, hoping to piece her life back together after two years of bombardment. But the hope of rebuilding was short-lived, as Israel maintained its siege and continued its daily bombardment. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters Within eight months, al-Mabhouh had fallen ill, been diagnosed with cancer and died, unable to find treatment in Gaza or travel abroad for care because of severe restrictions. She is among thousands of Palestinians still dying from preventable deaths, as Israel’s genocide and ongoing blockade continue to deprive people in Gaza of the means to survive. The ceasefire, now entering its second year, has done little to change the conditions that make life in Gaza deadly. Materials, essential goods and aid needed to rebuild homes, hospitals and civilian infrastructure remain largely blocked. Gaza: One year after ceasefire, killing and displacement of Palestinians persist Read More » “About four months after we returned to our home, her health began to deteriorate rapidly, and we had no idea what was wrong with her,” her husband, Sami al-Mabhouh, 62, told Middle East Eye. He took his wife from one hospital to another in Gaza City, but overwhelmed medical facilities could not provide the tests she needed. The couple eventually travelled to Deir al-Balah, in central Gaza, hoping to find treatment at a private hospital. “The journey was extremely difficult, and transportation was so scarce that by the time we arrived, we were exhausted and unable to go straight to the hospital,” he recalled. They spent the night at relatives’ home in Bureij refugee camp before going to the hospital the following day. “After a lengthy series of examinations, which cost us a great deal of money just to obtain a diagnosis, doctors told us she had liver cancer. By then, her health had deteriorated so severely that she could no longer sit up or walk.” A deadly wait for treatment Within two weeks, al-Mabhouh had secured a medical referral to travel abroad for treatment. But she was forced to wait alongside more than 20,000 other patients with referrals who were also awaiting Israeli permission to leave Gaza. With none of Gaza’s 36 hospitals operating at full capacity and only around 20 functioning partially, tens of thousands of patients cannot access the examinations and treatment they urgently need. Under the ceasefire agreement, Israeli authorities were supposed to allow medical supplies, medicines and materials needed to rebuild hospitals damaged or destroyed during the genocide into Gaza. But the agreement brought little relief to the devastated health sector. Between October 2025 and July 2026, the number of intensive care unit beds rose by just one, from 103 to 104, according to Physicians for Human Rights Israel . 'She survived the bombing, but not the blockade' - Sami al-Mabhouh, Palestinian husbend Dialysis unit availability deteriorated further over the same period, falling from 17 percent to 12 percent. “As we waited for her turn to travel, we contacted doctors in Italy and Egypt and shared her medical records with them. They told us her cancer was treatable but not in Gaza,” Mabhouh said. “We waited for three months. She didn’t survive long enough to receive treatment. The disease progressed, and on 18 June, she died. “She survived the bombing, but not the blockade.” Al-Mabhouh was among at least 1,570 patients who died in Gaza while awaiting medical evacuation between October 2023 and July 2026. They included 505 cancer patients and 264 children, as evacuations remained far below pre-war levels. Between 10 October 2025 and mid-September 2026, around 3,423 patients were evacuated abroad for treatment, an average of around 10 patients a day, according to Physicians for Human Rights Israel. Before October 2023, between 50 and 100 patients a day were evacuated. ‘No refuge from death’ Illness is only one of the many consequences of Israel’s genocide that continue to claim Palestinian lives. For those who survive illness and bombardment, the search for shelter presents its own deadly risks. Around 92 percent of Gaza’s homes have been destroyed or damaged by the Israeli military. Most of the territory’s 2.2 million people remain in makeshift tents or severely damaged buildings, exposed to the elements and the constant threat of collapse. Last winter, at least eight children, most of them infants sheltering in makeshift tents, died of hypothermia as temperatures plunged. 'Wherever we go to flee death, we find another. There is no refuge from death' - Muhammed Abujarad, Gaza resident With another winter approaching, families face an impossible choice: endure the cold in tents that offer little protection or risk being buried beneath the ruins of damaged buildings. “I sleep every day doubting that I would wake up alive the next day. I expect the building to collapse on us every single day,” Muhammed Abujarad, who lives in a severely damaged building in Tal al-Hawa neighbourhood, southwestern Gaza City, told MEE. “I am not imagining something that would not happen. It happened several times, and I know people who died after their home collapsed on their heads last month.” Abujarad was referring to a building collapse in September that killed and injured 21 displaced Palestinians, who were sheltering in it after homes were destroyed during the war. The building, previously damaged from an Israeli strike, collapsed shortly before dawn on 21 September, killing 21 Palestinians, including 12 children, and injuring 14 others who were pulled from the rubble. They were among 61 Palestinians who have died in building collapses since October 2023. “We know it’s lethal to stay here, but there are no alternatives. We lost our home in northern Gaza and lost another home belonging to our relatives in Gaza City. We have no other choices left,” Abujarad, 44, said. Queuing for water and phone charging: What survival looks like in Gaza Read More » “We cannot return to live in tents. We lived through our most hellish days in tents during the war. Now, as long as we have a ceiling above our heads, it’s better than dying of heat or cold in tents that don’t protect us from anything.” By August, the number of destroyed structures in Gaza had increased by nine percent since the ceasefire was declared in October 2025, according to the UN Satellite Centre (Unosat). Despite the ceasefire agreement, Israel continues to restrict the entry of tents, mobile homes and heavy equipment, leaving Palestinians without adequate shelter, while damaged buildings remain standing hazards. The restrictions also obstruct repairs to Gaza’s water and wastewater infrastructure, around 90 per cent of which has been damaged or destroyed. With vital systems in ruins, Palestinians face growing exposure to contaminated water and preventable disease. “When you are living in a damaged home with no walls or a tent in the middle of mud and wastewater, how would you protect your children?” Abujarad said. “Wherever we go to flee death, we find another. 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