Gaza toddler dies After 14-month wait for Israeli medical exit

WEB DESK: A Palestinian toddler has died after waiting more than a year for Israeli approval to leave the Gaza Strip for life-saving medical treatment, highlighting the dire healthcare crisis in the besieged enclave.

According to Al Jazeera, Nidal Abu Rabeea, aged two-and-a-half, had been suffering from an enlarged liver and persistent high fever. His family had obtained medical referral documents and approval to receive treatment abroad, but the child was left waiting for 14 months before his death.

“Israel closed the crossings and killed my son,” said his mother, Iman Hamdouna. “He struggled for months while hospitals here could not provide the care he needed.”

Gaza’s medical infrastructure has been severely damaged amid the ongoing Israeli military campaign. Hospitals are operating under critical shortages, with limited access to equipment, medication, and staff.

According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, 1,360 patients have died since May 7 2024 while waiting for permission to travel for medical treatment. The Rafah crossing, the territory’s only gateway to the outside world, was closed by Israel on that date and has only partially reopened since 2 February 2026, with very limited movement.

Zaher al-Wahidi, spokesperson for the Gaza Ministry of Health, told Al Jazeera that Israel “has deliberately and methodically destroyed the health system.” He outlined five major challenges facing Gaza’s medical services: the near absence of patient evacuations, a lack of medical equipment, critical shortages of medication, widespread destruction of facilities, and a shortage of qualified medical workers.

Thousands of Palestinians in Gaza continue to seek urgent medical care abroad, but delays in approval and restricted movement through crossings leave many patients at risk.

The death of Nidal Abu Rabeea underscores the human cost of the blockade and the fragile state of Gaza’s healthcare system amid ongoing conflict.