Throughout the Israeli offensive on Gaza, Sana Rajab and Mohamed "Abu Abed" Mughaiseeb worked at the heart of the emergency health services run by MSF. Sana, a nurse, and Abu Abed, a doctor, are first and foremost Palestinians from the Gaza strip. "Every single one of us, without exception, has suffered in this war", they explain.
It all began on 27 December 2008. "It was 11 a.m. when the bombing started. It was a Saturday" recalls Abu Abed. "Within hours, there were lots of casualties. It was chaos. We visited the hospitals to find out what the medical needs were. Because MSF had emergency stocks in the area, we were able to donate drugs and medical supplies."
Dr Abu Abed and Sana : MSF palestinian staff in Gaza. January 2009. Photo by François Dumont/MSF
Even as bombs continued to fall on Gaza City, the MSF medical team reopened its post-operative clinic. The clinic took in casualties who had undergone emergency operations in hospital and who needed medical follow-up. "Because of the bombings it was very difficult for patients and MSF staff to move around” explains Sana. “We gave our colleagues emergency medical 'kits' so that they could give medical assistance right at the heart of their neighbourhoods."
Despite the intense fighting, the MSF teams assisted a total of 60 to 70 patients every day in Gaza City. They included injured people who needed medical treatment, as well as many individuals suffering from "normal" or chronic illnesses who could not access their regular treatment in the circumstances.
Twenty two days after the Israeli offensive began, a ceasefire allowed MSF teams to administer more aid across the Gaza strip. A tent-based hospital was set up to provide secondary surgical care and follow-up to those injured during the fighting. Within two weeks, MSF doctors had operated on around 40 people, mainly suffering from burns, infected wounds or requiring orthopaedic surgery.