In a rare moment of relief amid the unrelenting violence in Gaza, nine severely injured children have been evacuated to Jordan for reconstructive surgery and long-term rehabilitation, Doctors Without Borders (MSF) announced on Wednesday.
The evacuation mission was conducted in collaboration with the Jordanian Ministry of Health and marks one of the few successful international medical transfers since the beginning of Israel’s brutal assault on Gaza. The children, all victims of Israeli air strikes, arrived at a specialized hospital in Jordan that offers treatments no longer available in Gaza due to the health system’s collapse.
“These children have survived the unthinkable. But now begins a new chapter—one that requires not just surgery, but years of recovery,” said Cyril Cappai, MSF’s Head of Mission in Jordan.
War Wounds Run Deep: Surgery, Rehab, and Mental Health
The injuries sustained by these children go far beyond what emergency aid can treat. MSF said the young patients require advanced reconstructive surgery, physiotherapy, and mental health support to have any hope of returning to a semblance of normal life.
“Some of them have multiple fractures, deep burns, or internal wounds. And all of them carry the psychological scars of war,” Cappai emphasized. “Their bodies may one day heal, but their minds will need just as much care.”
Health experts stress that this group represents only a tiny fraction of thousands of injured children in Gaza. With the enclave’s health sector in ruins—hospitals bombed, power shut off, medicine running out—most children remain untreated and in agony.
MSF called the evacuation a “small but critical intervention” and urged the international community to increase pressure for more humanitarian corridors and medical evacuations.
Gaza’s Health System Near Collapse as War Continues
Since the start of Israel’s assault on Gaza, hospitals have been overwhelmed, and thousands of children have suffered life-altering injuries. Humanitarian organizations say the health system is no longer functional, with doctors operating in makeshift conditions and no fuel to run medical equipment.
More than 36,000 Palestinians have been killed, many of them women and children, with survivors left in shattered homes and limbless bodies.
“This evacuation is not a solution,” said one Jordanian doctor. “It is a reminder of how many are left behind. We’re only scratching the surface of the suffering in Gaza.”
As the war drags on and aid remains restricted, groups like MSF continue to call for a ceasefire, unrestricted humanitarian access, and global accountability. In the meantime, for these nine children, the road to healing has just begun—but at least they now have a chance.
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