Dr. Ahmed Al-Maghrabi: From Gaza to Belgium – A Doctor Whose Consciousness Was Forged in the Intifada, Recounts a Tale of War and Exile

Yemenat

07-05-2025

This article is based on an exclusive telephone interview with Dr. Ahmed Al-Maghrabi, currently residing in Belgium, who chronicles the life of a Palestinian doctor rooted in Gaza, his awareness blossoming in the crucible of the Intifada.
From the heart of Gaza, where childhood memories intertwine with the cries of the Intifada, emerges the story of Dr. Ahmed Al-Maghrabi, a son of the Al-Sabra neighborhood. More than a simple autobiography, it's a mirror reflecting the features of an entire generation, one whose consciousness was shaped by the rhythm of stones and the roar of explosions. Born in 1977, Ahmed's journey began as a witness to the First Intifada, the 'Stone Intifada,' which ignited in 1987 and lasted six years, leaving an indelible mark on the memory of a generation that spent its youth amidst the turmoil.
Al-Zaitoun School, opposite the Islamic University, embraced him during his preparatory years, bearing witness to the occupation's violence and the students' unwavering resolve to resist, as they confronted Israeli soldiers, pelting them with stones. The Israeli army's frequent closures of the school, sometimes lasting half an academic year due to constant clashes, did not deter the students from seeking knowledge; instead, it fueled their determination to continue their studies in other schools.
Ahmed lived a difficult life, filled with strikes and clashes with occupation soldiers, who did not hesitate to use tear gas, rubber bullets, and live ammunition to suppress the Intifada. Curfews and the storming of homes in search of 'wanted' individuals were a common sight, painting a grim picture of life under occupation, a picture etched into the memory of an entire generation.
In 1993, as the dawn of the Palestinian Authority, led by Abu Ammar, broke and it assumed control of the Gaza Strip, Ahmed was in his penultimate year of high school. He continued his studies with unwavering determination until he completed his secondary education, opening up several paths before him. Turkey and Egypt were among the options considered, but fate led him to advice from friends in Ukraine, who pointed out the ease of travel and residency procedures there. And so, Ahmed packed his bags and headed to Ukraine in 1995, where he spent his first year learning the language, then enrolled in medical school, graduating in 2002 with the medical degree his father had always dreamed of him attaining.
Ahmed's father was the only son in his family (he had two sisters, one in Egypt and the other in Gaza) and the father of ten children, nine sons and one daughter, with Ahmed being the eldest. The father spent his life as a nurse at Al-Mamadani Hospital, carrying on a legacy from his own father, who had also been a nurse since the time of the British Mandate, when doctors and nurses were a rare commodity. The dream of medicine had always danced in the father's imagination, and he wished to see one of his sons follow that path.
Ahmed returned to Gaza and joined the internship program at Al-Shifa Hospital, near his home, completing his mandatory training in 2004 to become a general practitioner. He worked temporarily in several hospitals, but was unable to secure a permanent position, neither in the public nor private sector. With the deteriorating security situation, he considered emigrating in search of a better future, but fate had other plans.
Suddenly, his father passed away from a heart attack at the age of fifty, leaving behind a great void. As the eldest son, Ahmed felt a responsibility towards his family and could not leave them alone. But, as if fate wanted to compensate him for his loss, on the very day of his father's death, he received calls from UNRWA, the government sector, and Doctors Without Borders, offering him jobs. After deep thought and prayer, he decided to join the government sector, to serve his people and to be a worthy successor to a worthy predecessor.
After his father's passing, sadness enveloped Ahmed's heart for three long months, during which he could not overcome the bitterness of loss, even failing to go and take up the job he had long awaited. He was gripped by the fear that he would be assigned to remote areas in northern or southern Gaza, as the Director-General of Hospitals, Dr. Fathi, was known for his strictness and inflexibility, and his decisions were not open to discussion.
However, the insistence of his family and friends prompted him to reconsider, especially after the Ministry of Health informed him that he would be replaced if he did not start work. He woke up early, performed the dawn prayer, and told his mother and wife that he would go to take up the job. He did not have the bus fare, so he walked until he reached the Ministry of Health, went up to the office of the Director-General of Hospitals, and knocked on the door, and he was granted permission to enter.
The man sitting across from the director was only visible from the back. The director asked, 'You're the last doctor who hasn't come to take up his post, aren't you? Your name is Ahmed Al-Maghrabi?' The director picked up his file, and Ahmed felt his heart pounding, fearing he would be sent to a remote location.
In that poignant moment, the man sitting across from the director rose, grabbed Ahmed by the back, and shook his hand warmly, weeping as he asked about his well-being. This man was the Director-General of Nursing at the Ministry of Health, Dr. Munir Abu Dalal, who turned to the Director-General of Hospitals and said, 'This is the son of my friend Ibrahim Al-Maghrabi, who passed away three months ago, we want to help him.' Dr. Fathi was moved and replied sympathetically, 'Please sit down, you are the first one I will give a choice to, may God have mercy on your father.' This moment was a lifeline for Ahmed, the beginning of a new path he had not anticipated.
Dr. Munir Abu Dalal took Ahmed aside and advised him, 'You are not a specialist, I will send you to a specialty where the number of doctors does not exceed five in the entire Gaza Strip, which is plastic and burn surgery.' And so, Ahmed began working at Al-Shifa Medical Hospital, in the plastic and burn surgery department, aspiring to specialize and develop his skills. He found in the head of the department, Dr. Nafith Abu Shaban, a spiritual father who encouraged and inspired him greatly. In less than a year, he sent him on a training course to Morocco for two months in plastic and burn surgery. In 2010, he received an online scholarship to study burn science from London for three years, and completed his master's degree in 2013, but his ambition did not stop there.
He began contacting many institutions around the world, seeking support for a Palestinian doctor who wanted to specialize and complete his studies. He received a response from the same institution that supported him in his online studies, and they supported him in pursuing a master's degree in reconstructive surgery. Part of this scholarship involved a fellowship in plastic and reconstructive surgery in India, and working on the thesis and academic matters in London in 2015, completing the studies in 2017. Ahmed strived to achieve his dream, driven by an ambition that knew no impossible.
In 2018, he returned to Gaza to continue his work at Al-Shifa Hospital, in addition to opening his own clinic in the heart of the city. He was a pioneer in the field of hair transplantation in the Gaza Strip, and received specialized training courses in this field from several countries.
His ambitions did not stop there, but he dreamed of establishing an integrated hospital and a skin bank, for which he prepared a comprehensive study to establish this bank that would serve burn patients in particular. Eleven months before the war, he bought a prime piece of land of 500 square meters, and built a five-story building on it: a basement and four floors. He dedicated the basement to be a beauty center for women, the first floor for a hair transplant clinic and his private clinic, while the upper floors were to be a residence for him and his family. He also planned to establish a company for cosmetic products and had already contacted companies in Turkey.
But, under the weight of the war that broke out on October 7th, all these rosy dreams vanished in an instant. He lost everything he owned, estimated at about $450,000, and his hopes for a bright future were shattered in a single moment.
During the war, he was stationed at Nasser Hospital, sleeping about an hour or two in the operating room. The number of injured was in the hundreds, and the wounded were lying by the hundreds in the corridors and in the hospital yard, the situation was catastrophic. The electricity would go out during operations, and they would work by flashlight. The most difficult moments were during the siege of the hospital, his family was with him, there was no food or water, and they were drinking from the tap, which was not potable.
His young daughter, three years old, remained asleep most of the time from hunger, his heart was breaking and he wished for death as he watched his daughter and the children suffer from hunger. His nephew was diagnosed with a cancerous tumor in the brain, he was not allowed to go to the European Hospital to undergo a tumor removal operation, they told him, 'No one can approach the hospital, the occupation army will kill him.' At the moment of the hospital's storming, his nephew went out and headed to the European Hospital to undergo the operation, and he is still receiving chemotherapy.
He recalls one case, a two-year-old girl with Dr. Ghassan, who wanted to amputate her leg, but he refused and told him, 'He will perform a reconstruction for her.' He stayed for four hours, and after he finished the operation, he told the nurse to call someone from her family to give him instructions on how to deal with the child, the nurse returned to tell him that the child was the only survivor out of 25 people. Amidst the destruction and despair, Ahmed found himself facing a great humanitarian responsibility, trying to save what could be saved, and alleviating the pain of those around him, even in the darkest of circumstances.
He says, 'In the midst of the war, when the hospital corridors were filled with the wounded, and we had to choose who would live and who would die, I felt a helplessness I had never known before. Those moments will remain a stain on the forehead of humanity, and a constant reminder of the high price we pay in Gaza.
The most difficult challenge he faced in the hospital was when the corridors were filled with the wounded, and there were only six operating rooms in the hospital. They had to choose four wounded and leave the rest to die, due to the lack of sufficient medical personnel, space, and medical equipment. How harsh those moments were, they were dying before their very eyes.
He also says, 'I always dreamed of a private hospital in Gaza, a place where I could provide the best possible care for my people. I bought the land, and started building, but the war stole everything from me. All that remains is the scattered ashes of dreams, and a bitter sense of loss
He decided to leave Gaza because the targeting had become clear, a war of extermination, with the world watching, and specifically targeting doctors and journalists. Staying in Gaza meant waiting for certain death. He was communicating via Facebook with some people, including the Belgian professor Delphine Noels, who insisted on helping him, and provided him with an invitation from a university to study for a year as a research student, under which he obtained an entry visa.
In poignant and emotional moments, he left Gaza with his family, unable to hold back his tears as he gazed at the destruction and heard the cries of hungry children, and all those horrific scenes that accompanied him on his way to the Rafah crossing.
At the Rafah crossing, one of his journalist friends insisted on documenting the moment of his farewell as he wept bitterly, contemplating the wall that separates life and death, between Gaza and Egypt. Behind that wall lies death, torment, pain, and oppression, while on the other side lies life and safety, separated from him by only a few meters – a paradox that reflects the magnitude of the tragedy that Palestinians are living through.
After arriving in Cairo, he spent a whole month confined to his home, suffering from severe frustration due to the difficulty of adapting to the new life away from the bombing and death. He felt guilty for leaving Gaza, its people, and the patients, and was haunted by the idea of returning, but he knew that it was impossible, embodying the feeling of helplessness that accompanies many who have been forced to leave their homes.
While in Egypt, he did not rest, but quickly coordinated with the Belgian professor Delphine Noels and a group of Belgian volunteers to establish a charity and a project called 'Compassionate Hearts for Palestine,' out of his belief in the need to provide assistance to the people of Gaza in every possible way.
Despite the recent establishment of the organization, it has been able to achieve tangible achievements on the ground, as an educational school for children has been established in Deir al-Balah, as well as a medical clinic specializing in the treatment of children and skin diseases, and the provision of free medicines. In addition, the organization has distributed mineral water and food parcels to the displaced, and provided tents to shelter them. Two weeks ago, they were able to provide prosthetic limbs for ten children who lost their limbs in Gaza and are now in Jordan for treatment, and they are still striving to provide a 3D Printer for printing prosthetic limbs inside the Gaza Strip.
In mid-October of last year, 2024, he arrived in Belgium, and was sent to the Charles Roux Hospital, which provided him with housing and work in the burn and plastic surgery department. This is how he spends his days in Belgium, with his heart hanging in Gaza, and the effects of the war still haunting him in every moment: images of the dead, the sounds of explosions, images of his relatives, 70 of whom have been martyred..
'Despite all the pain and suffering, I still believe that the cause of Palestine will ultimately prevail. Arab and Islamic unity is the only way to achieve this, and we must renounce our differences and unite for Gaza, for Palestine, for a better future for our coming generations.'
The cause of Palestine is an Arab and Islamic issue, and we cannot achieve victory for Gaza while we are divided. All Arab and Islamic countries must unite and abandon sectarian and ideological conflicts, and with this we will achieve victory for Gaza and for all of Palestine.
Despite all the calamities he has experienced in Gaza, which were embodied in the years 2009, 2012, 2014, 2018, and 2021, leading up to the current genocide, Dr. Ahmed Al-Maghrabi continues his journey. Even his injury by shrapnel in the head while working at Al-Shifa Hospital did not deter him from his determination. His story reminds us that hope is born from the womb of suffering, and that even the medical sector, which is supposed to be a safe haven, has not been spared from attacks. Let us learn from Dr. Ahmed how to create light from ashes, strength from pain, and unity as a path towards victory. Palestine is not just a cause, but a responsibility that rests on the shoulders of every human being who believes in justice and freedom.