The French surgeon Pascalou Andre, 60 years old, is in Brasília to visit his son, who has lived in Brazil for two years. During his stay, the doctor shared with the g1 images and reports of the experience as volunteer at a European hospital located in the south of the Gaza Strip, in city of Khan Youneswhere thousands of victims of the war between Hamas and Israel seek help.
“Imagine 1.5 million people in a city with the capacity to receive 200 thousand people. A hospital with the capacity to care for 300 people in bed, but which is receiving 900 people per day. There are 4 thousand people living in the corridors, as is a hospital Europeans are a little more protected”, says the doctor.
In the city, he says there is no light at night, and that people run after the trucks looking for food.
Andre worked at the hospital from February 8th to 22nd (find out more below). He worked as an infectious disease specialist in France, but three years ago he decided to dedicate himself to emergency care.
In April last year, volunteered at West Bank. Since then, it has worked together with the Palestinian Ministry of Health and the Islamic Red Cross.
It was only on February 6 that he obtained authorization to go to the location by “PaMad“(Palestine Doctors), institution that organizes a rotation of volunteer doctors every 15 days in the region.
Pascalou says he was trapped for a night and a day in the Suez Canal before arriving in Gaza. As soon as he entered the city of Rafah, his first impression was one of despair..
At the hospital, the surgery block had the capacity to receive 40 people, but what about 110 people were admitted daily to perform surgeries. One of the moments remembered by the doctor was when a lady shouted at him in the hospital:
“Why are you taking care of my grandson who died if you are to blame for this?”
According to the Frenchman, the noise of drones and bombs is incessant. Of 25 hospitals in the region, the surgeon estimates that only six are still in operation.
The workload for healthcare professionals is extremely excessive. Pascalou says that their Palestinian colleagues only had one change of clothes because most had to flee their homes.
“They lost 10 kg to 15 kg [de peso], no one has paid their salary for 3 or 4 months. But beyond that, they are very welcoming and give their best to the patients”, says Pascalou Andre.
Asked what was most disturbing, Pascalou smiles and responds “all”. But he highlights the influence of other countries in the conflict and regrets the “hypocrisy and silence of the international community, especially the European Union and the United States”, says the volunteer doctor.
Andre declares that the entry of food, water, medicine and even electricity are being controlled by Israel. One point that surprised him, however, was the Palestinians’ response to their speech of non-violence. “Even with all this, there is no hate.”
For him, Brazil’s support for the Palestinians is very positive. “Congratulations to Brazil,” he says.
Pascalou Andre says he intended to return to Gaza as a volunteer in March, but that, at the request of his colleagues, decided to raise awareness among other people, countries and politicians about the plight of the Palestinians.
Andre returns to France this Wednesday (03), where he intends to continue sharing his story about what he experienced in those two weeks.
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Tags: French doctor volunteer Gaza shares images experiences lived conflict Federal District
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