Fadel Al Najji used to be a dedicated soccer player, but now the 14 year old is largely
confined to his home in Gaza City. Both of his legs were severed in an Israeli drone attack in
September. His mother, Najwa Al Naji, says her son has changed since the injury.
My son Fidel is not like he used to be. He has become withdrawn and isolated from people. He
doesn't like to see anyone, doesn't talk to his friends, and is always sitting alone. It is
as if he is dying slowly, and I wish that they would fit them with prosthetic limbs for Fidel
and a cosmetic artificial eye for Amir so that they can go back to living their lives like
before and integrate with society. A quarter of Gaza's nearly 5000
war amputees are children like Al Najji. Prosthetic limbs are in scarce supply because
of Israeli restrictions on materials like plaster of Paris, seven aid and medical sources
told Reuters. Two medical centers said they were trying to reuse old prosthetic limbs
recovered from people killed in the war. Others are creating makeshift artificial limbs
with plastic piping or wooden planks, medics said, though this risks damaging the stump or
causing infection. The International Committee of the Red Cross says imports of plaster of
Paris have been almost completely restricted for over 4 months, with only enough supplies
left to last until June or July. Other Gazan amputees also told Reuters they are
struggling to resume their pre-war lives without prostheses. Some of them, including
Hazem Fura, are on a waiting list and may have undergone preparatory work. The 40-year-old is
unable to work since losing his left leg above the knee in December 2024 when he says Israel
bombed his house. I am not asking for the luxuries of life. I am asking for a limb so I
regain my humanity, to regain the life I was living to a certain extent. Israel cites
security concerns as the reason for restrictions. Lack of prostheses severely
disrupts recovery and prolongs trauma for amputees, many of whom might have avoided limb
loss had more specialist surgeons been available. It also puts them in greater danger
from ongoing Israeli attacks, which Palestinian health officials say have killed
750 Palestinians since the ceasefire.