Israel’s ongoing assault on Palestinian territories 12/8/2024

                                           Israel’s ongoing assault on Palestinian territories

 Israel’s ongoing assault on Palestinian territories since October of last year has devastated Gaza, leaving tens of thousands dead and over 100,000 others wounded, many with life-altering injuries. In fact, the United Nations reported this week that Gaza now has the highest per-capita rate of child amputees in the world, with many children enduring surgery without anesthesia.

One powerful example of the human cost of this war is the story of 13-year-old Leyan Abu al-Atta, whose leg was amputated following an Israeli airstrike on her home in Deir al-Balah last December. The journey of Leyan and her family is captured in the new documentary All That Remains by Al Jazeera’s Fault Lines. In the film, director Rhana Natour describes Leyan’s harrowing ordeal, explaining that although Leyan’s family managed to raise awareness and secure a medical evacuation, it was too late to save her leg. As Natour notes, “For every Leyan who is able to leave Gaza, there are hundreds, if not thousands, who are not able to leave.”
Despite the family’s efforts, Leyan’s injury was severe. After gangrene set in, doctors had no choice but to amputate her leg in Cairo to save her life. The documentary not only follows Leyan’s recovery, but also provides a window into the deep emotional toll the conflict has had on her family. Leyan’s mother had to make the heartbreaking decision to leave behind her other children and her husband, who remains in Gaza, in order to save her daughter’s life. The film captures the painful separation, while also highlighting Leyan’s incredible resilience and determination.
Dr. Ghassan Abu-Sittah, a renowned surgeon who worked in Gaza with Doctors Without Borders, provides chilling insight into the scale of amputations in the region. He describes how, due to delays in treatment, many children’s wounds became infected, leading to amputations that were necessary to save their lives. Dr. Abu-Sittah also emphasizes the long-term challenges faced by these children, who require multiple surgeries and prosthetics as their bodies grow.
The film paints a grim picture of the daily trauma faced by children in Gaza, but it also offers a glimmer of hope. Leyan’s story is one of survival, but it also raises critical questions about the broader humanitarian crisis unfolding in Gaza. As Natour’s documentary poignantly shows, while some children like Leyan are fortunate enough to escape the worst of the conflict, many others are not so lucky. In a time when the suffering of Palestinian civilians is too often ignored or downplayed, All That Remains stands as a powerful reminder of the human cost of this ongoing war funded by a constant flow of weapons from the United States.
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