‘I’ll never give up’ says Dublin surgeon refused entry to Gaza Strip for third time

“I HAVE AN entire room in my house full of baby formula. I bought it for Gaza. I’m ready to send it, but there is no way to get it in.”

For Dr Mohamed Shaalan, the unopened boxes stacked in his Dublin home have become a daily reminder of how difficult it has become to reach civilians inside Gaza, even during what is officially described as a ceasefire.

An Irish-Egyptian orthopaedic surgeon currently working at Tallaght University Hospital, Dr Shaalan has spent months trying to return to Gaza to volunteer his expertise.

Instead, he has been turned away repeatedly, blocked from entering the territory even as hospitals there struggle with severe shortages of staff, equipment and basic supplies.

Earlier this month, after travelling to Jordan in the hope of joining a World Health Organisation-coordinated medical mission, Dr Shaalan was refused entry to Gaza for the third time this year. As with previous attempts, he said no explanation was given.

He added that the refusal came without explanation, as with his previous attempts.

“I thought with the ceasefire they would allow more doctors,” he said.

This is my third attempt in 2025, and they denied me all three times.

Dr Shaalan previously volunteered at the European Hospital in Khan Younis in 2024, where he worked under extreme conditions treating mass casualties.

The hospital has since been largely destroyed.

Dr Shaalan said the perception that humanitarian aid is flowing into Gaza is “totally wrong”.

“That’s completely false,” he said.

“From what we’ve been told by WHO and by organisations on the ground in Jordan, they are not able to deliver aid into Gaza at the moment, even during the ceasefire.”

‘Can’t do anything’

Though a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas has been in place since October, aid agencies and news investigations report that restrictions on both the delivery of basic supplies and the entry of foreign medical personnel persist.

Doctors, nurses and specialised medical teams have been turned away even after receiving preliminary approval, and denials often occur at the last minute with no official explanation.

One Washington Post report earlier this month found that dozens of foreign health workers, including surgeons, anaesthetists and nurses, have been prevented from entering Gaza in recent months, despite one of the stated intentions of the ceasefire being to expand humanitarian access.

Some medical workers who had already travelled to the region were forced to return without ever reaching patients.

International medical volunteers have been rotating in and out of Gaza on short-term missions coordinated by the WHO since early 2024, and while the number of doctors allowed in each week has increased, about 20 per cent of those seeking to volunteer continue to be turned away last-minute.

Dr Shaalan travelled to Jordan earlier this year expecting to enter Gaza, having followed the standard pre-clearance process for foreign medical volunteers.

Instead, he was barred once again.

“I contacted the Irish embassies in Amman and Tel Aviv in January and March for help,” he said.

“They told me they can’t do anything and that I should contact the Israeli military organisation that approves entry. But they don’t give reasons for refusing people, and sometimes they don’t even answer.”

‘Personal items only’

Volunteer doctors are given detailed instructions before travel, he said, including severe limits on what they are allowed to bring.

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“We are told we can carry personal items only. Clothes, shoes, scrubs, nothing medical at all,” Dr Shaalan said.

Doctors are also restricted to carrying approximately $300 (€255) in cash (strictly for transport) and just three kilograms of dry food for rotations that can last weeks.

“If you carry more, there’s a risk they will send you back,” Shaalan said.

One of Dr Shaalan’s colleagues, whose name appeared on the approved “green list” of doctors allowed to enter Gaza, was turned away at the Israeli checkpoint for carrying a single personal stethoscope.

“He told them, ‘This is my own stethoscope. I can’t work without it,’” Dr Shaalan said.

“They told him, ‘No, you’re not allowed to carry medical aid,’ and they sent him back to Jordan.”

“A stethoscope isn’t a luxury,” he said. “Anaesthetists need it to assess patients before surgery.”

‘Overwhelmed’ hospitals

Dr Shaalan said hospitals inside Gaza remain overwhelmed and under-supplied.

He is in constant contact with doctors and patients he treated during his previous mission, during which he worked “night and day” in the Khan Younis hospital.

“When I was there in 2024, I operated on more than 85 patients in two and a half weeks,” Dr Shaalan said. “Most had multiple injuries.”

Myself and other staff worked day and night and slept two or three hours between shifts.

Many patients received temporary treatment and are still waiting for definitive surgery.

“The staff are being told to deal with the new and urgent injuries” he said.

“But these people are living with infected fractures and severe complications.”

He recently heard from the director of Gaza’s Indonesian Hospital, who he said was in tears.

“He said they don’t even have supplies to do first aid,” Dr Shaalan said.

“If that’s the situation in a small hospital, imagine the big ones.”

Ceasefire ‘not real on the ground’

Dr Shaalan believes international pressure has waned while conditions remain dire.

“People need to understand that the ceasefire is not applied on the ground,” he said. “Humanitarian aid is no better than before.”

He added that renewed pressure is urgently needed.

“We have to push our governments and the international community to force access for healthcare workers and aid,” Dr Shaalan said.

Despite being blocked repeatedly, Dr Shaalan said he will continue applying to enter Gaza.

“I will never stop, I’ll never give up,” he said.

“I’ll apply again and again until they allow us in.”

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