The international medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières, MSF) has issued an urgent appeal for the immediate evacuation of 12,000 critically ill and injured Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, warning that thousands of lives remain at risk without access to essential medical treatment.

In a press statement released Monday, MSF stressed the need for a transparent and structured medical evacuation mechanism to ensure patients receive life-saving care abroad while safeguarding their right to return to Gaza after treatment. The organization said the current absence of such a system leaves thousands stranded in a war zone, cut off from the care they desperately need.

“For too long, critically ill patients in Gaza have faced impossible conditions. It is imperative to establish a clear and secure medical evacuation pathway that includes guarantees for the patients’ return after receiving treatment,” the MSF statement said.

Since the outbreak of Israel’s full-scale assault on Gaza on October 7, 2023, the humanitarian situation has deteriorated catastrophically. According to health authorities and aid organizations, more than 195,000 Palestinians have been killed or wounded, the vast majority of them women and children. An estimated 11,000 remain missing under the rubble, and hundreds of thousands have been displaced from their homes amid constant bombardment and siege.

MSF described the situation as a genocidal campaign marked by “killing, starvation, destruction, and displacement,” with the international community’s repeated calls—along with rulings from the International Court of Justice (ICJ)—continuously ignored by the Israeli government.

The organization also highlighted the deadly impact of the man-made famine, which has claimed the lives of many, including infants and children. Gaza’s healthcare infrastructure, already on the brink of collapse, has been systematically targeted and destroyed. Hospitals operate without sufficient fuel, medicine, or staff, while patients requiring complex surgeries or long-term care are left to die untreated.

“Every day that passes without a functioning evacuation system condemns more patients to preventable death,” MSF warned, calling on international stakeholders to intervene immediately and pressure Israel to allow the safe passage of medical cases and humanitarian aid.

Despite repeated calls from global health bodies, including the World Health Organization (WHO), for the protection of Gaza’s health facilities and civilian population, Israeli airstrikes and blockades continue unabated, raising serious concerns of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

As the siege on Gaza enters its tenth month, aid agencies are sounding the alarm: Without decisive international action, Gaza’s medical catastrophe will deepen, and the prospects of survival for thousands will fade away. (ILKHA)