Since the ceasefire in Gaza began on January 19, healthcare providers have continued to face an uphill battle to meet the overwhelming needs of displaced communities and restore a healthcare system destroyed by 15 months of bombing. EMERGENCY, an international medical humanitarian organisation and 2015 Right Livelihood Laureate, is at the forefront of this effort.
“Since the war started, there’s been a massive movement of displaced people,” said Francesco Sacchi, Head of Mission in Gaza for EMERGENCY, who arrived in Gaza in January after months of preparation and bureaucratic obstacles.
“Now, tents are everywhere, even in areas that used to be farmland.”
Sacchi, the only non-medical professional on EMERGENCY’s Gaza team, is no stranger to working in war and crisis zones. Although he was previously based in Afghanistan, he said the devastation in Gaza is unmatched.
Recalling the first time he entered Gaza through a humanitarian convoy, he said, “I was next to a colleague from another organisation that I met inside the armoured vehicle, and she asked me, ‘First time?’ I said, ‘Yes.’ And she said, ‘It’s something that you’ve never seen in your life.’”
Sacchi quickly learned that his colleague was correct.
“For the first 30 minutes when you drive, you cannot find a single building that is still one piece, that is not damaged by the bombings,” he said.
“It’s pretty hard to imagine how to deal with this level of destruction… Removing all the debris and reconstruction – it needs to be done quickly because people are living in the mud in the tents when it rains. It’s a disaster.”
EMERGENCY is focused on the Khan Yunis governate in southern Gaza, where its healthcare professionals have been based since August 2024. On top of working alongside a Palestinian NGO to provide care, the team recently began operations at a newly built EMERGENCY clinic in al-Qarara.
“We had to wait three months to get permission to build the clinic, and even then, there were significant challenges in getting the necessary materials,” Sacchi said.
Since entering Gaza, EMERGENCY has focused on providing essential primary healthcare services, including treatment for chronic conditions like diabetes and high blood pressure that were neglected during the war. During Israel’s 15-month bombing campaign, priority was given to treating blast injuries.
The clinic also regularly treats infections and illnesses caused by the harsh conditions of tent living. Patients regularly seek help for respiratory infections, skin diseases and burns from camping stoves, Sacchi said.
Despite the January 19 ceasefire, EMERGENCY continues to face significant bureaucratic and logistical barriers. Several months into its lifesaving operations in Gaza, the organisation depends on the World Health Organisation’s cargo shipments to operate.
“The supply chain has been tough,” said Sacchi. “We started sending materials to Amman, [Jordan], in September, but it wasn’t until recently that our first cargo arrived in Gaza.”
The cargo, comprising four truck-loads of supplies, currently sits unused, pending approval by Israeli authorities.
The road to recovery in Gaza is long, and the scale of need remains immense. But, according to Sacchi, EMERGENCY is committed to helping rebuild the region’s healthcare infrastructure, no matter how long it takes.
“We are still here, and we will not leave, even with the ceasefire,” said Sacchi. “I saw it in Afghanistan in an EMERGENCY hospital – we see the effect of war many years after its conclusion. It’s important for us to be here and in the coming years because that’s when people will need the support.”
