168 Gazan doctors complete medical training in Gaza braving genocide

Gaza: At Israel-ruined al-Shifa hospital in war-torn Gaza City, at least 168 Palestinian doctors completed their advanced medical training, which culminated with a graduation ceremony held on Thursday before the ruins of the hospital complex.

Al Shifa Hospital was once the largest hospital in the Palestinian territory.

The ceremony became a stark symbol of endurance where doctors, who named themselves as “Humanity Cohort”, successfully earned their Palestinian Board certification for medical professionals, braving the two years of Israel’s genocide.

All along the two years, medical students kept their studies and attended examinations, while working at hospitals there, when the health system was staggering with patient load. The Palestinians were enduring starvation, repeated displacement, and relentless violence throughout the period.

There were empty seats at the ceremony, which bore photographs of health workers who lost their lives during the Israeli attacks.

According to Al Jazeera, Gaza Health Ministry official Youssef Abu al-Reish described the event as a graduation from “the womb of suffering, under bombardment, among rubble and rivers of blood.”

One of the graduates told Al Jazeera that they achieved the advanced degree, enduring unparalleled hardships, which suggests Palestinians’ resolve to remain steadfast to their commitment to scientific progress.

Al Shifa Medical Complex was a repeated target for Israel forces since the war broke out in October 2023. The Zionist forces first raided the hospital in November that year and arrested and detained the institution's medical director, Dr Mohammed Abu Salmiya. Then it struck the hospital in March 2024, leaving the hospital almost ruined.

The WHO Health Cluster has recorded 825 attacks on healthcare facilities in Gaza since October 2023.