Gaza eye care crisis leaves thousands on brink of blindness

Thousands of Palestinians in Gaza with eye diseases are at risk blindness as hospitals are damaged and vital medicines remain unavailable due to a healthcare crisis triggered by Israel’s two-year genocidal war on the Palestinian enclave. 

According to a report published on Thursday by The New Arab’s Arabic-language sister site al-Araby al-Jadeed, Israeli attacks on Gaza’s main eye care facility - the Eye Hospital in Gaza City - have severely undermined access to treatment.  

Speaking to al-Araby al-Jadeed, Dr Abdel Salam Sabah, director of Gaza’s Eye Hospital, described rapidly deteriorating conditions for patients in the war-ravaged enclave. 

The hospital was put out of service for more than 14 months after Israeli strikes destroyed sensitive surgical equipment, he said. 

It was later rehabilitated and reopened at the end of last December with external funding; however, the hospital currently operates at significantly reduced capacity compared to before the outbreak of war, causing misery for patients. 

Sabah told al-Araby al-Jadeed that the damage has contributed to a gradual deterioration in the eyesight of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza, who are already struggling under the Israeli siege, with acute medicine shortages, the destruction of surgical facilities, and the closure of crossings, which prevents Palestinians from accessing specialised care abroad, all contributing to the crisis. 

He said more than 4,000 patients suffering from glaucoma - who rely on daily eye drops to keep pressure within safe limits - are now at risk of losing their sight due to the absence of appropriate treatment and a severe lack of available surgical procedures. 

Sabah further warned that glaucoma is a blinding disease and that without medication or necessary operations, patients face permanent vision loss.  

Although the hospital has partially reopened, Sabah said its current capacity falls far short of demand, with approximately 2,400 to 2,500 patients currently on surgical waiting lists. Around 70 per cent require cataract operations, while others need retinal, corneal and strabismus procedures. 

Sabah told al-Araby al-Jadeed that one of the most serious challenges facing Gaza’s healthcare system is the loss of all four modern cataract fragmentation and suction devices, which previously formed the backbone of the hospital’s surgical work.  

He added that equipment used for retinal surgery and the removal of eye fragments has also been completely destroyed. 

"Today there is no specialised equipment to perform delicate operations, which has exacerbated the crisis catastrophically and raised waiting lists to unprecedented numbers," Sabah said. 

Since its partial reopening, the hospital has been receiving around 200 patients a day, despite needs far exceeding its capacity. Sabah also warned of a severe shortage of medicines, particularly for chronic and acute conditions, which has compounded patients’ suffering. 

According to the hospital director, retinal diseases and complications related to diabetes are among the most urgent cases requiring precise and immediate intervention.

"Before the war, retinal surgeries were performed efficiently in Gaza, but today they have almost completely ceased," he said. "The retina department alone sees 1,500 to 2,000 patients regularly, many of whom require laser sessions, Avastin injections, and close monitoring to prevent bleeding and eye leakage."

Avastin injections are now almost entirely unavailable, he said, while the single remaining laser machine is serving the entire Gaza Strip after other equipment was destroyed. 

Around 30 percent of diabetic patients in Gaza also depend on eye clinics for treatment, placing their vision at serious risk as essential care is no longer accessible.

Sabah has repeatedly urged international health and humanitarian organisations to take urgent action to supply vital medicines and surgical equipment, and to allow medical teams to enter Gaza with the necessary tools. 

He has previously warned that the continued siege and closure of border crossings risk turning blindness in Gaza into a mass catastrophe. 

The comments come as Gaza’s Ministry of Health warned that specialised eye care services are facing severe disruption, with widespread damage to diagnostic and surgical equipment drastically reducing operating capacity and extending waiting times.  

The ministry has stressed that the immediate entry of specialised medicines and diagnostic tools is essential to prevent further deterioration of eye-care services.