Gaza cousins face lost youth, and family tragedy, after amputations

Abdullah Nattat once led wedding celebrations and entertained kids as a young, energetic performer and singer.

The 30-year-old now has both legs amputated while seated in a wheelchair.

Before the war, Abdullah said, “I would typically be busy performing at Christmas and New Year’s celebrations held by Gaza’s hotels and restaurants.” Abdullah chuckled and shook his sad face.

Abdullah was moved from Beit Lahiya in the north of northern Gaza to an apartment owned by relatives in the city in September as an Israeli military ground operation began.

An airstrike struck as he passed a group of pedestrians close to As-Saraya Junction.

Abdullah’s injuries would change the course of his life if he were to survive.

According to Abdullah, who is married and the father of a four-year-old child, “I was returning from the market with a friend and had purchased a few things for the house.”

“There was a massive explosion all of a sudden. I didn’t get up until I discovered myself surrounded by black smoke and lying on the ground. I attempted to stand up, but I was unable. He recalled that when I looked at my legs, one had completely broken off at the knees and the other had severely broken off.

“I had no idea what had occurred,” she said. My friend’s legs were torn apart, just like mine, and I looked beside him. Both of us were drenched in “self-indulgent blood.”

Not by itself

Abdullah lost consciousness following the accident. He later learned that both of his legs had been amputated above the knee and that he had received devastating news when he woke up in the hospital. The wounds were covered in white bandages.

Abdullah remarked, “That moment was very difficult and harsh for me.” What else could I do, though? I had to accept that this was God’s will, regardless of what.

As you can see, I’m not the only one. My cousin Diaa, who lives with us, is similarly suffering. The burden that we bear is the same.

Diaa Abu Nahl, 30, his close friend and former coworker with whom he hosted wedding celebrations, welcomed Abdullah as he continued speaking.

Diaa endured a tragedy that was even worse.

He was seriously hurt in a direct Israeli attack on their Beit Lahiya family home in July, killing 22 people, including his wife and two daughters, Hala, five, and Sama, three.

Diaa’s right leg was amputated, while the other suffered severe injuries and needed additional surgeries to save it.

“The strike occurred sometime between 2 and 30 am. My wife, my daughters, and I were all lying next to each other while we were asleep, Diaa claimed.

“I didn’t feel anything,” he said. I just had a black ash scream in my room as I awoke. I attempted to stand up, but I was unable. When I examined my legs, I discovered that they had been torn apart, facing different ways,” he continued.

I began looking for my wife and daughters around me but could not see them because I had stopped focusing on my legs. Then, as a result of the severe bleeding, I lost consciousness.

Diaa realized that he had lost both his 26-year-old wife and his two daughters while in the hospital.

Even though I was right beside them, I keep thinking about how they died, and I didn’t. After losing them, I completely lost my sense of life, and my injury has made life much harder.

Abdullah’s face was filled with deep regret and compassion for his cousin and friend as Diaa spontaneously told his story to Al Jazeera.

Diaa struggled to hold back tears as Abdullah quietly declared, “His story is incredibly painful. He lost his wife and his children, two of whom he said, “he lost his leg.”

When you witness someone else’s tragedy in Gaza, he continued, “your own pain feels lessening.”

“Live in wheelchairs”

A ceasefire was established in October after two years of Israel’s genocidal conflict in Gaza, despite Israel’s ongoing attacks, which have resulted in the death of hundreds of Palestinians.

At a medical facility run by the Gaza Municipality, Abdullah and Diaa are attempting to move on.

The two young men reside at Diaa’s family’s home in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood of northern Gaza City where they spend the majority of their time together.

They find comfort and support in their shared wounds and suffering, despite not hiding their loss of youth or the reality of living in a stricken Gaza.

As Abdullah turned the wheels of his chair from side to side, he said, “We now live on wheelchairs because our legs once raced against the wind.”

“Every step, we need assistance. Someone has to lead us backwards. Our bodies suffer greatly from cold and are weak. None of Gaza’s current prosthetic limbs and intensive care are available.

Since the start of the Israeli war on the strip in October 2023 through the end of 2025, according to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, about 6, 000 limb amputations have been reported.

Around 25% of these cases are caused by children, compared to about 12.7 percent for women.

The ministry claims that advanced prosthetics are necessary in order for the amputees to undergo urgent and long-term rehabilitation programs that are not currently offered in Gaza.

Better future, please?

Now that Abdullah and Diaa are at a similar point, they both long for a second chance.

Standing on my feet with prosthetic limbs now predominates in Abdullah’s words. “All my thoughts and dreams now revolve around that.”

He emotionally remarked, “Every night when I lie in bed, I imagine myself with full legs and that I will stand on them again the next day.”

Abdullah and Diaa hope to soon have the opportunity to travel abroad to undergo treatment and fitting of prosthetic limbs.

In a war in which we had no hand, Abdullah said, “our most fundamental rights have turned into mere dreams and wishes.”

Source: Aljazeera