Foreign Volunteer Doctor Reveals Hamas Exploits Hospitals

[Social Media]

 

Dr. Baxtiyar Baram, a Kurdish physician who recently volunteered in northern Gaza, has provided a unique and troubling perspective on the ongoing situation in the region. In an interview published on the Kurdish website Rudaw and on YouTube, Dr. Baram revealed that despite having control, Hamas enjoys minimal support from the Gazan population and is involved in exploiting hospitals for its own benefit.

 

According to Dr. Baram, only about 10% of Gazans support Hamas, yet the group maintains its grip on the territory. His insights come from his firsthand experience as part of a small medical team that entered Gaza through Rafah in April, prior to the Israeli Defense Forces' operations in the area and their reentry into Jabalya. This team, consisting of four doctors and a nurse, was among the first foreign medical aid workers to enter northern Gaza in months.

 

Dr. Baram's testimony highlights the severe exploitation of medical facilities by Hamas. He noted that Hamas has established a "VIP" section in one hospital, where only certain patients—those with connections—receive treatment. "We made it to northern Gaza," Baram told Rudaw’s Sangar Abdulrahman. "They needed an orthopedist; I was the only candidate who dared to go." He described the journey through the Netzarim corridor, controlled by Israel, to reach northern Gaza, which reminded him of the devastation seen in Kurdish cities during the Anfal campaign by Iraq.

 

Working in Al-Awda in Jabalya and Kamal Adwan in northern Gaza, Dr. Baram witnessed the harsh realities faced by the medical staff and patients under Hamas's control. He described incidents where Hamas used hospitals as hiding places for its leaders. "It is a political and military organization that needs to exploit all these places for survival, and that’s unfortunate, but I saw that hospitals had been used for hiding Hamas leaders," he said.

 

Baram recounted an encounter with a founder of Hamas in one of the hospitals, highlighting the forced acceptance by Gazans of Hamas's use of their hospitals as bases. He also told of a wounded man affiliated with a Salafi religious movement who was denied proper treatment by Hamas due to their disapproval of him. "When we were trying to save his life, there was no oxygen, so we took him to intensive care on the third floor, and an employee stopped us, saying the department is only for VIPs," Baram recounted. He challenged the employee and ensured the patient received the necessary care.

 

The exploitation of hospitals by Hamas, according to Baram, extends beyond using them as shelters. He indicated that Hamas manipulates the medical system to serve its interests, further complicating the dire health situation in Gaza. Baram also noted the lack of genuine support for Hamas among Gazans, estimating that 90% of the population does not back the group but are too afraid to oppose it. "They have eyes everywhere," he said. "Every bakery, coffee shop, and sunflower seller is associated with them."

 

The chaotic environment in Gaza has allowed mafia-like groups to gain prominence, taking advantage of the instability. Baram described how these groups steal aid and sell it on the black market. "They carry swords," he said, illustrating the lawlessness in certain areas. These groups even attacked the aid workers' car as they navigated through areas between Israeli and Hamas control.

 

Dr. Baram painted a grim picture of life in Gaza, where people are on the brink of starvation, and basic items have become exorbitantly expensive. He met individuals who had lost dozens of family members since October 7, and others who spent months' worth of salary on basic food items like eggplant, zucchini, and rice. Flour-based products are among the few commonly available items, entering northern Gaza as aid.

 

This interview with Dr. Baram provides a relatively neutral yet stark overview of the conditions in Gaza, shedding light on the hardships faced by the Gazan people and the complex, often detrimental role played by Hamas in their lives.

 

Credit: JP Post 2024-05-31

 

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[thaibeachlovers]

Blah blah blah.

Should the word of one person be taken as gospel, and even if he is correct, it's not an excuse to break international law and destroy almost every hospital in Gaza.

War crime on war crime by israel, knowing the US will protect them from repercussions.

[Bkk Brian]

1 minute ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Blah blah blah.

Should the word of one person be taken as gospel, and even if he is correct, it's not an excuse to break international law and destroy almost every hospital in Gaza.

War crime on war crime by israel, knowing the US will protect them from repercussions.

Blah blah blah, yes you'd love to gloss over it wouldn't you. Here's some of the local doctors and of course you neglect the facts of hostages being held in hospitals, weapons, command centers....more blah blah blah for you

 

 

MPs demand inquiry Gaza doctors at centre of harrowing BBC report are Hamas supporters

https://aseannow.com/topic/1323156-mps-demand-inquiry-gaza-doctors-at-centre-of-harrowing-bbc-report-are-hamas-supporters/#comment-18790472

 

[johng]

The American doctor Adam Hamawy that saved a congresswomen Tammy Duckworth's life after her helicopter crash...is also in Gaza

 

https://www.politico.com/news/2024/05/19/duckworth-gaza-medical-team-pleas-white-house-00158799

 

“I have never in my career witnessed the level of atrocities and targeting of my medical colleagues as I have in Gaza,” the letter added.

 

https://www.npr.org/2024/05/18/1252324720/american-doctor-gaza-israel-hospital-interview

 

Hamawy told Kurtzleben that the situation in Gaza is unlike the other conflicts he's been involved in, because he's treating primarily civilians, rather than combatants. "I'm seeing mostly children, many women, many elderly — people who have nothing to do with this war at all. And I see very, very few people of fighting age."

[Bkk Brian]

20 minutes ago, johng said:

The American doctor Adam Hamawy that saved a congresswomen Tammy Duckworth's life after her helicopter crash...is also in Gaza

 

https://www.politico.com/news/2024/05/19/duckworth-gaza-medical-team-pleas-white-house-00158799

 

“I have never in my career witnessed the level of atrocities and targeting of my medical colleagues as I have in Gaza,” the letter added.

 

https://www.npr.org/2024/05/18/1252324720/american-doctor-gaza-israel-hospital-interview

 

Hamawy told Kurtzleben that the situation in Gaza is unlike the other conflicts he's been involved in, because he's treating primarily civilians, rather than combatants. "I'm seeing mostly children, many women, many elderly — people who have nothing to do with this war at all. And I see very, very few people of fighting age."

Fortunately he didn't go to Nasser Hospital where 30 hostages were held in small rooms or if he did see any hostages being held in Rafah I trust he would have of course said.

 

Soon, the captors moved the family. Sharon said terrorists covered her husband in a sheet so he looked like a corpse and dressed her in traditional Arab clothes. They packed the family into an ambulance and brought them to a hospital Sharon now recognizes from the news as Nasser, in Khan Younis.

Three days later, Sharon said, she heard crying outside their room. It was Emma.

“This guy just handed me Emma, like she’s a box or something. And I was shocked,” she said. “She was panicking and crying. I couldn’t believe that they brought her back.”

They spent the weeks in a room on the hospital’s first floor. Stacked boxes separated the hostage section from the rest of the floor, Sharon said. She described sleeping with the girls on a small bed, using a bloodstained pillow. At one point, she said, 12 hostages were packed in the room. Nearby, they learned, were two additional rooms of captives, nearly 30 in total.

https://www.timesofisrael.com/hostage-who-was-freed-with-daughters-vows-to-keep-fighting-for-husbands-return/

 

[Hawaiian]

On 5/30/2024 at 7:38 PM, johng said:

The American doctor Adam Hamawy that saved a congresswomen Tammy Duckworth's life after her helicopter crash...is also in Gaza

 

https://www.politico.com/news/2024/Ham05/19/duckworth-gaza-medical-team-pleas-white-house-00158799

 

“I have never in my career witnessed the level of atrocities and targeting of my medical colleagues as I have in Gaza,” the letter added.

 

https://www.npr.org/2024/05/18/1252324720/american-doctor-gaza-israel-hospital-interview

 

Hamawy told Kurtzleben that the situation in Gaza is unlike the other conflicts he's been involved in, because he's treating primarily civilians, rather than combatants. "I'm seeing mostly children, many women, many elderly — people who have nothing to do with this war at all. And I see very, very few people of fighting age."

Seems as they got their clearance to leave, but three of them choose to stay.

 

https://theintercept.com/2024/05/17/gaza-american-doctors-evacuated/

[placeholder]

 

 

Unfortunately, the good doctor's assessment of the low level of support for Hamas, contradicts what polling information there is:

"A March 2024 opinion poll by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research showed support for Hamas among Gazans topping 50 percent, a 14-point rise since December 2023."

https://www.foreignaffairs.com/israel/how-hamas-ends-gaza

 

It should also be noted that the Kurds and the Israelis have very warm relations stemming from Israel's support for the Kurds in their struggle to create an independent Kurdistan.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel–Kurdistan_Region_relations#:~:text=The State of Israel and,missions in each other's territory.

[coolcarer]

1 hour ago, placeholder said:

 

 

Unfortunately, the good doctor's assessment of the low level of support for Hamas, contradicts what polling information there is:

"A March 2024 opinion poll by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research showed support for Hamas among Gazans topping 50 percent, a 14-point rise since December 2023."

https://www.foreignaffairs.com/israel/how-hamas-ends-gaza

 

It should also be noted that the Kurds and the Israelis have very warm relations stemming from Israel's support for the Kurds in their struggle to create an independent Kurdistan.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel–Kurdistan_Region_relations#:~:text=The State of Israel and,missions in each other's territory.

There are a lot of questions and results in the March 2024 polls. Your link is totally out of context and support for electing Hamas is actually reducing. I get it though it's ok, anything to try and discredit the good doctor who was only passing on his experience and did not have the benefit of polling over 1000 people.

 

When asked which political party or political trend they support, the largest percentage selected Hamas (34%), followed by Fatah (17%), while 11% selected other or third-party groups, and 37% said none of them or did not know. Three months ago, 43% supported Hamas and 17% selected Fatah. Six months ago, before the current war, support for Hamas stood at 22% and support for Fatah stood at 26%.This means that support for Hamas during the past three months has witnessed an 11-point drop while support for Fatah remained unchanged during the same period. In the West Bank, support for Hamas today stands at 35% (compared to 44% three months ago), and for Fatah at 12% (compared to 16% three months ago). In the Gaza Strip, support for Hamas today stands at 34% (compared to 42% three months ago) and support for Fatah at 25% (compared to 18% three months ago).

 

However, if new parliamentary elections were held today with the participation of all political forces that participated in the 2006 elections, only 64% say they would participate in them, 30% would vote for Hamas, 14% for Fatah, 6% for third parties, and 15% remain undecided. Among the voters, support for Hamas stands at 47%, Fatah 22%, third parties 9%, and the undecided at 24%. Compared to our findings three months ago, the current results among the voters indicate a 4-point drop by for Hamas and a 3-point rise by Fatah. In the Gaza Strip, vote for Hamas among the voters stands today at 45% (compared to 52% three months ago and 44% six months ago) and vote for Fatah among the voters stands today at 26% (compared to 21% three months ago and 32% six months ago). In the West Bank, vote for Hamas among the voters stands today at 48% (compared to 50% three months ago and 24% six months ago) and vote for Fatah among the voters stands today at 16% (compared to 18% three months ago and 40% six months ago).

 

https://www.pcpsr.org/en/node/969

[herfiehandbag]

On 5/31/2024 at 12:15 PM, thaibeachlovers said:

Blah blah blah.

Should the word of one person be taken as gospel, and even if he is correct, it's not an excuse to break international law and destroy almost every hospital in Gaza.

War crime on war crime by israel, knowing the US will protect them from repercussions.

Well why not, we've been listening to you bang on uncritically about entirely uncorroborated claims, with no supporting evidence for the last 8 months now!