Omani doctor risks his own life to save wounded people in Gaza
Dr Khalid said that Gaza children are eating coins, pebbles and small batteries to stop their hunger pangs
Omani gastroenterologist Dr. Khalid Al Shmwsy has decided to remain in Gaza despite the intensification of the Israeli military attack on Gaza and its threat to capture the Rafah crossing.
“The Jews took control of the Rafah crossing port; we are now with the people of Gaza living with them and dying with them,” Dr Shmwsy said in a post on his official account on the X platform.
We are fine, don’t worry. We work in endoscopy. He added: “My life is not more precious than the life of any child in Gaza. I thank you for your interest in my situation but do not forget that in Gaza, there are more human beings than me, better and more important than me, men, women and children, who were tied up and expelled from their homes, and fought and were killed, may be you are ignorant of their name.”
Dr. Khalid used to share his diaries of his experiences in Gaza and what he witnessed with the injured in the European Hospital in Gaza. Here, we highlight what the doctor published during his time in the war zone in Gaza:
Dr Khalid shared a photo of a patient’s X-ray and said: “Gaza children eat coins, pebbles and small batteries out of hunger; this 8-yearold swallowed a piece of metal, and it got stuck in his oesophagus.”
In another case, he extracted a battery from the body of a 5-yearold girl in Gaza. Out of extreme hunger, she ate the watch battery.
He added: ”For your information, there is no endoscopist in
Gaza to treat this case. Because of God’s mercy on me and the little girl, I was in Gaza then. This war is criminal and has made children eat pebbles and batteries.”
On heavy bombing and fierce battles near him in Gaza. He explained: “They woke us up with their explosions, the shaking of the place, and the roar of their bullets as if they were wiping out cities completely. At the hospital, a woman came with a body without a head and a chest split from the force of the bombing.”
“One of the scourges of war is the amputation of children’s limbs. Here is one of them: because of the bombing, his legs and hands were amputated. Imagine a child without legs to walk on and without hands to eat with. How does he feel? How does he live? What is his future? War is a crime, and bombing is a crime,” he added.
He arrived in Gaza on the 2nd of May with a team of doctors from different specialities with the help of the FAJR scientific organisation.
The organisation said: “Our second batch of mission team members has safely arrived in Gaza. There’s a lot of work ahead, and we are committed to making a real impact. We are proud of our dedicated volunteer, gastroenterologist Dr Khalid Al Shmwsy from Oman, who works tirelessly to provide critical care. His commitment to health in challenging conditions is truly inspiring.”