life-changing injuries

43,000 people in Gaza suffered life-changing injuries since October 2023: WHO

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Three-year-old Ahmed Humam Adwan, who had taken shelter with his family at Cairo School in the al-Rimal neighborhood after fleeing from Beit Hanoun, lost his left arm in an Israeli strike targeting the school in Gaza on August 20, 2025. [Ahmed Jihad Ibrahim Al-arini – Anadolu Agency]

An estimated 43,000 people of the 172,000 injured in Gaza since October 2023 have sustained life-changing injuries, including around 10,000 children, the World Health Organization (WHO) said Tuesday.

Speaking to reporters in Geneva, Reinhilde Van de Weerdt, the WHO representative for the occupied Palestinian territory, said the updated estimates reflect the devastating long-term impact of the conflict on Gaza’s population and healthcare system.

Since WHO’s last report in September 2025, nearly 5,000 additional life-changing injuries have been recorded, almost half of them after the ceasefire was announced in October 2025, she said.

According to WHO data, major limb injuries account for the largest share of severe cases, with more than 22,000 recorded, followed by over 5,000 traumatic amputations, more than 3,400 major burns, over 2,000 spinal cord injuries, and more than 1,300 traumatic brain injuries.

READ: ‘Slow suffocation’: Oxygen crisis threatens patients at Gaza hospitals

More than 50,000 injuries now require long-term rehabilitation, Van de Weerdt said.

She noted that nearly 14,000 patients registered for limb reconstruction services between July 2025 and May 2026, with almost half of those assessed requiring additional surgery.

Meanwhile, due to severe shortages in Gaza, only 500 out of 2,300 amputees evaluated between September 2024 and May 2026 have received permanent prosthetics.

Despite mounting needs, rehabilitation services remain critically limited, with no rehabilitation facility fully operational in Gaza, according to the WHO.

Van de Weerdt said more than 400 patients are currently waiting for specialized rehabilitation beds, forcing hospitals to discharge patients early and increasing the risk of permanent disability.

She also warned that no rehabilitation equipment had entered Gaza over the past two years, while 18 shipments containing wheelchairs, prosthetic limbs, and rehabilitation devices remain pending clearance.

“The people of Gaza have endured unimaginable suffering,” she said. “They deserve not just emergency care, but the sustained support needed to recover and reclaim their lives.”

READ: Italy evacuates 72 Palestinian students from Gaza under university program

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