Horror in Gaza demands a response

Though we may feel powerless, it’s vital to act in the face of the atrocities we are witnessing

Almost two years into the war on Gaza, the devastation has surpassed even the darkest expectations. The death toll is beyond comprehension, famine is being engineered, and what unfolds amounts to the genocide of an entire nation – innocent men, women, and children

It’s hard to know what to do with the daily images of these horrors from my comfortable world where I will never want for a warm safe home to sleep in or for my next nourishing meal. I know plenty of people who endlessly share posts of atrocities on their social media feeds – I find myself wondering how healthy that can be or what that really achieves. However, everything we do from our safety here seems inadequate. In other humanitarian crises the most obvious response is to donate to the large NGOs and charities who can get aid to where it’s needed. In a conflict where food and basic supplies are being deliberately stopped at the border, it’s impossible to know how to respond as an individual. 

Lobbying our Government also feels futile. Sure, it has been much stronger than other nations in words of solidarity since the start of this war, yet it can be argued that it has been very weak in terms of taking meaningful action that could potentially harm trade or relationships with our biggest allies.  

One feature of this conflict that is particularly monstrous is the deliberate targeting of our fellow healthcare workers and hospitals in actions which human rights organisations state may constitute war crimes. Israel is carrying out the systematic destruction of hospitals and targeting of particular individual doctors. As a result, Gaza is losing critical clinical knowledge and experience as well as the physical infrastructure which will be incredibly difficult to rebuild. It’s impossible to imagine the horrors that our colleagues are being subjected to, impossible to imagine the terror of working in a hospital in say, Dublin, Cork, or Galway while it’s under attack, all while not knowing if your family is still alive.

One feature of this conflict that is particularly monstrous is the deliberate targeting of our fellow healthcare workers

In Ireland, there is a growing movement to boycott the use of medications made by an Israeli company where a viable alternative exists. The company is one of the largest suppliers of generic medicines in Ireland and is known to supply the Israeli military with medical supplies and donations. The movement is asking the HSE and hospital groups to remove products from their formularies, GPs not to prescribe, and for patients to request that pharmacies do not dispense these medications.

As a GP, I rarely think about the actual products that patients collect from the pharmacy once I write out their prescription, or where they come from.

But if this small act allows us to show solidarity with our Palestinian colleagues as well as signal to the world that we will not stand idly by, then I can only support it. I know that my asking the local pharmacy to dispense an alternative version is not going to make Benjamin Netanyahu suddenly sit up and stop the bombing and starvation. I’m sure there are people who would say that such actions are nothing more than ‘virtue signalling’ that only serve to make us feel better rather than achieve anything meaningful.

As a child, I remember learning in school about various wars, famines, and the Holocaust. I just couldn’t understand how they were not stopped by other nations who clearly knew what was happening. I couldn’t understand how they wouldn’t say ‘enough is enough’ and bring it all to an end.

 One day, when international condemnation finally comes to bear and history looks back on these events, I may not be able to say I did very much – but at least I can say I did this.