'Two weeks after her death I got a call': Gaza patients face agonising delays for evacuation

When Gaza's medical board approved Amina Abu al-Kas to leave the Strip for treatment abroad, her son Saber said it felt like the beginning of a new life. "It brought life back into her. She knew there was no treatment in Gaza, so she was happy and excited," he told the BBC.

Amina was suffering from an aggressive necrotising infection that had spread to her skull. Doctors in Gaza told her they did not have the medicines or the therapies to treat it. Saber said the pain was unbearable. "My mother couldn't sleep day or night; she stayed awake, crying out from the pain. Painkillers caused stomach ulcers and inflammation, and the doctors banned her from taking them."

After receiving the medical referral, Saber said the family waited for news that Amina had passed security clearances and had been accepted by a foreign country for treatment - both necessary to leave Gaza. "We knew that at any moment God might take her. And we also knew that at any moment a miracle might happen, that we might get a call saying, 'Get your bags ready and prepare to travel through the crossing,'" Saber told the BBC. "We waited a long time, but no response came. My mother died [on 29 May], and two weeks after her death, I got a call from the hospital informing me that her paperwork was ready."

Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry says Amina is one of 300 Palestinians who have died waiting for medical evacuations since the US-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas began there last October. The figures are also used by the World Health Organization (WHO), which assists with patient transfers via Gaza's Israeli-controlled border crossings with Israel and Egypt.

Thousands of others - the health ministry currently says 15,000 - are still waiting for treatment abroad - some for war-related injuries; others for conditions such as cancer. The list of evacuees is constantly fluctuating, as patients' conditions and decisions change, meaning not all deaths may be recorded.

Since the ceasefire began over eight months ago, the WHO says 1,977 people have left Gaza for medical treatment. Unless the process speeds up, it could take years to evacuate all those in need. "We are talking about something that feels like a miracle," Saber said. "If a patient's name is selected and they are granted permission to travel for treatment abroad, it is almost a miracle."

After being approved by Gaza's medical referral board, patients must pass security checks by Israel, the host nation, and any transit countries – and also be accepted by a host nation for treatment.