Iktimal, a 53‑year‑old mother of eight from Gaza, spent her final months in a hospital in Egypt after a delayed evacuation from her home near the beach. She had first felt unwell in February 2026 and underwent a biopsy, but shortages of medical equipment in Gaza’s histopathology labs postponed her diagnosis for more than a month. When the results finally arrived, they confirmed cervical cancer.
The family said that the lengthy process to obtain the necessary medical records and to secure an escort for her transfer contributed to her death. After a hysterectomy in April, Iktimal’s recovery was slow and painful, and she began to suffer severe kidney pain. Local hospitals were unable to provide the care she required, and the evacuation application, submitted in May, was delayed because only one escort was allowed. The family ultimately had to send her husband, and the application was approved only after two weeks, by which time Iktimal’s condition had become critically severe.
According to the World Health Organization, none of Gaza’s 36 hospitals operate at full capacity; only 19 function partially, and they face critical deficits in equipment, fuel, electricity and medicine. Israel’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) stated that patient approvals are independent of escort approvals and that most requests are processed within days, with a 98 % approval rate. The ministry of health reported that around 21,000 people are still awaiting medical evacuation.
The situation has prompted calls for urgent international action. The Euro‑Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor estimated 51,000 excess deaths from the blockade, while a Lancet study in April 2026 reported 16,300 non‑violent deaths, 8,540 of which were excess. Gaza’s health ministry has appealed for the immediate opening of crossings and the facilitation of patient exits without conditions, emphasizing that such transit requires an official request from a receiving country and security screening in accordance with Israeli procedures.
