Adam Abu Halib, five, lost the vision in his left eye in an Israeli strike last that destroyed his family home in Gaza last year. Now he risks losing his sight altogether unless he gets treatment abroad, as two years of devastating war have left the local healthcare system in disarray.
“Adam remained trapped under the rubble for three hours. When he was rescued, he had a direct injury to his face and his left eye. The result was a complete loss of vision in that eye, along with severe facial deformities,” his father, Mohammad Abu Halib, told The National.
“The real problem now is that his right eye – the only eye he can still see with – is threatened with complete blindness. Doctors confirmed that there is severe pressure and inflammation that has spread from the injured eye to the healthy one. If urgent and specialised surgical intervention does not take place, Adam will lose his sight completely and become fully blind.”
Adam is just one of thousands of patients at risk of losing their vision due to the severe shortage of medicines, surgical equipment and diagnostic tools caused by the war and Israeli restrictions on the entry of medical supplies, according to doctors in Gaza.
Dr Walid Shaqoura, director of St John Eye Hospital in Gaza, said the scale of the crisis has grown steadily since the war began in October 2023.
“Thousands of eye patients in the Gaza Strip are now threatened with losing their vision because medical equipment and supplies needed for eye surgeries are not allowed to enter the territory,” he told The National.
Before the war, many patients with serious eye conditions were able to receive treatment either in Gaza or through medical referrals abroad. But those referrals have largely stopped, leaving thousands of patients without options.
Dr Shaqoura said there were about 9,000 patients on waiting lists for eye treatment and surgery, though the real number in need was likely much higher.
“These figures represent only the patients who managed to reach hospitals,” he said. “There are certainly thousands more who were unable to reach medical facilities and have not even been registered.”
The impact of the war on eye health has been severe. According to Gaza's Health Ministry, about 3,000 cases of blindness or vision loss have been recorded during the conflict, along with 17,000 eye injuries, many caused by explosions and flying debris.
Some patients have recovered after emergency treatment, but many others remain on waiting lists for operations that doctors say cannot currently be performed due to a lack of equipment and medicines.
“The biggest challenge we face is the shortage of diagnostic equipment and essential medications,” Dr Shaqoura said. “Patients with glaucoma, for example, require daily eye drops to prevent damage to the optic nerve. Without them, they risk permanent blindness.”
Hospitals are also struggling with a shortage of surgical materials such as artificial lenses and sutures needed to perform operations.
Some conditions, such as retinal detachment, require urgent surgery to save a patient’s sight. Without intervention, vision loss can become permanent.
“We used to perform many operations immediately and save patients’ eyesight,” Dr Shaqoura said. “Today, the situation is completely different.”
The crisis is also evident at the Specialised Eye Hospital, Gaza’s only government centre dedicated to eye care.
Its director, Dr Abdul Salam Sabah, described the situation as unprecedented.
“We are facing a severe medicine shortage crisis, particularly for patients with chronic eye diseases,” Dr Sabah told The National.
The hospital currently receives about 200 patients each day, but its capacity is far below the demand. The waiting list has already reached 2,500 patients, and the number continues to grow.
Even more concerning, Dr Sabah said, is the destruction or malfunction of key equipment needed to perform eye surgery.
“The backbone of the hospital’s medical system has been damaged,” he said. “Cataract surgery machines, retinal surgery equipment and devices used to remove shrapnel from eyes are completely out of service.”
Currently, there is only one functioning laser machine in the entire Gaza Strip, he said.
Supplies have also run out.
“Our storage facilities are almost empty of essential surgical materials such as artificial lenses, Healon [a surgical aid for eye operations] and surgical sutures,” Dr Sabah said.
Patients with diabetes, who account for about 30 per cent of eye cases, are also facing serious risks because Avastin injections, used to treat diabetic eye complications, are no longer available.
“The situation is catastrophic,” Dr Sabah said. “Waiting lists are increasing in an abnormal way, and urgent international intervention is needed.”
For Zein Al Dalu, 16, from Gaza city, the war interrupted years of treatment.
Born with vision problems, she had regularly visited doctors and undergone eye surgeries in Gaza to stabilise her condition.
“Since the beginning of the war, none of the medical resources needed for my treatment are available,” she told The National.
The medications she relied on have disappeared, and the surgery she once received almost every year have stopped.
“I used to wear ocular prosthetic shells that helped maintain the shape of my eye and prevent infections. But since the war started, they are no longer available,” she said.
“If medical supplies don’t enter Gaza, my health will get worse. I urgently need to travel abroad for treatment.”
For eye patients and their doctors, ensuring proper treatment is a race against time. While some, like Adam, have received medical referrals for treatment abroad, their travel is uncertain because Israel controls the passage of Gazans through the border crossings.
“Every day that passes without treatment means more people losing their sight,” Dr Shaqoura said. “And once vision is lost, it may never come back.”
