Palestinians in Gaza desperate to travel abroad for life-saving treatment

Patients eagerly await the reopening of the Rafah crossing to get the critical medical care they need to survive.

Khan Younis and Rafah, Gaza Strip, Palestine –  In a small apartment in Khan Younis, surrounded by a war-torn landscape as far as the eyes can see, Abeer al-Awady counts the minutes until the much-anticipated ceasefire.

Her daughter Hanaa’s life depends on it.

The 15-year-old lets out a piercing cry whenever Abeer lifts the blanket shielding her face. Even the faintest glimmer of light triggers excruciating pain in the teenager’s sensitive, swollen eyes, leaving Abeer with no choice but to heed her daughter’s agonised pleas to be covered again.

Beneath the blanket lies a face marked by the relentless toll of cancer. A red mass protrudes from her left eye, her head appears shrunken, and her frail arms barely move. Her weakened voice and constant cries tell of the pain she’s endured since her diagnosis three months ago.

Abeer prays that the Rafah crossing, which Gaza shares with Egypt and has been sealed shut by Israel since its ground operation in the southernmost region of the enclave in May, opens as soon as the ceasefire comes into effect early Sunday. “I don’t know how much longer Hanaa will survive,” she said.