Islam Qdeih
10 August 2025
A 34-year-old resident of ‘Abasan, Islam spoke about her two-year-old daughter Sham who is suffering from a metabolic disease and extreme malnutrition:
Until the war began, I lived in the town of ‘Abasan in Khan Yunis, with my husband and our two daughters: Judi, 8, and Sham, who was born shortly before the war. Since then, we’ve been displaced about 15 times. Each move involved great suffering.
Sham was born after nine years of trying to have another child, and her father and I were overjoyed at her arrival. She was born healthy, and her weight was normal. During the war, when she received vaccinations at clinics, we discovered she was not gaining weight. From the age of six months, she got steadily worse. She is now diagnosed with severe malnutrition. At her age, she should weigh 12 kilograms, but she weighs only 4.5.
Since we discovered she wasn’t gaining weight, I’ve taken her again and again to hospitals and clinics, but doctors can’t diagnose what’s wrong. They told me she can only be diagnosed outside the Gaza Strip, because some of the tests aren’t available here. Every month, she’s hospitalized for 10 to 14 days. Because of the hunger, she also has an enlarged liver, and the hospital has a huge shortage of medication and other treatments. The only care available is antibiotics and IV fluids.
I am now staying with my daughters in a tent in al-Mawasi, Khan Yunis. A few months ago, my husband disappeared. I don’t know where he is. The only food I can get is from the community kitchens in the camp. I struggle to find milk and diapers for Sham. They are very hard to come by, and if available, the prices are extremely high. When Sham is at the hospital, Judi stays alone in the tent, and when I go there to be with her, there’s no one to care for Sham.
About a month ago, Sham got worse. She became very weak, and since then Nasser Hospital hasn’t discharged her. Two days ago, they stopped her IV and began giving her therapeutic milk. I hope she’ll start getting better.
I received a referral for treatment outside Gaza for Sham over a year ago. Doctors at the hospital say her condition is critical and she needs urgent care. I keep waiting for us to be able to leave so Sham can get the treatment she needs, but unfortunately, that hasn’t happened yet. All I want is for her to receive treatment and recover quickly.
* Testimony given to B’Tselem field researcher Olfat al-Kurd on 10 August 2025
* On 15 August 2025, Islam Qdeih managed to leave the Gaza Strip with her daughters, Sham and Judi, and travel to Rome with the help of the World Health Organization.