The prosthetics project supported by the Turkish Red Crescent aims to help people who lost limbs in Gaza regain mobility. As part of the project, 64-year-old Mahmud Fuat Dahshan, who lost his left leg, also applied to the prosthetics center in Gaza to walk again.
Dahshan said he was injured and had his leg amputated in an Israeli attack on a house in Gaza’s Zeitoun neighborhood in November 2023. Dahshan, who traveled to Egypt for treatment, said Israeli soldiers forced him to choose between his prosthetic leg and the wheelchair in which he was sitting as he returned to Gaza, and that he therefore had to leave his prosthesis behind.
Dahshan said his prosthesis was taken from him without any explanation and expressed hope that, after his new measurements were taken at the center, he would walk again and move without being dependent on a wheelchair. Dahshan thanked the Turkish Red Crescent for the project carried out for injured people and those who lost limbs.
Prostheses to be provided to around 20 people
Sadi Debur, manager of the Turkish Red Crescent’s Gaza office, said the project would help people who lost limbs partially regain their mobility and ability to carry out daily activities.
Debur said prostheses were fitted for 10 injured people in August and September, and that 10 more people were planned to benefit from the support in the second phase of the project. He identified insufficient supplies of raw materials and basic components used in prosthesis production in Gaza as one of the main challenges facing the project.
Husni Muhenna, public relations officer at the prosthetics center operated by the Gaza Municipality, said they had continued providing services to injured people and those who lost limbs since the beginning of the war. Muhenna said more than 6,000 amputation cases had been recorded during the war, based on data recorded in the healthcare system by the Palestinian Ministry of Health and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Muhenna said the center faced shortages of plaster and other basic materials used to produce prostheses, adding that restrictions were creating problems in bringing the necessary supplies into Gaza. He announced that the cooperation with the Turkish Red Crescent covered the provision of suitable prostheses for around 20 amputation cases.
Young prosthesis user continues walking exercises
Adi Abu Warda, who received a prosthesis in the first phase of the project, is undergoing physical therapy and walking exercises at the center. Abu Warda said his leg was amputated in an attack on October 10, 2023, and that Gaza lacked the facilities needed to produce prostheses at the time.
Abu Warda said the prosthesis had enabled him to return to his daily life, adding that he had previously been unable to leave his tent but could now walk and go outside with his friends.
Health centers in Gaza are struggling to access basic medical supplies as well as prosthesis production and rehabilitation services. The ongoing humanitarian crisis in the region is making it harder for people who lost limbs to receive treatment and regain their mobility.
