Italy Opens Hospitals to Gazan Children While US Shuts Its Doors
Italy has taken the lead in Europe on Gaza medical evacuations, airlifting more than 180 children and hundreds of relatives since 2024, even as the US has frozen humanitarian entry for Gazans. Reporting for The Media Line, Giorgia Valente describes how Italy has positioned itself as the humanitarian outlier, mounting large-scale airlifts while other European states accept only small numbers of patients.
On Aug. 12–13, Italian Air Force planes landed in Rome, Milan, and Pisa with 31 children and over 90 family members—Italy’s largest such operation yet. The Foreign Ministry called it not only an airlift but a statement of national commitment, coordinated with ministries, the Red Cross, and multiple UN agencies. Dr. Simone Pancani of Florence’s Meyer Children’s Hospital recounted cases ranging from mine-blast fractures to autoimmune disorders, all worsened by dehydration, malnutrition, and the grueling desert transfer from Gaza to Israel’s Eilat airstrip. One patient, a young woman named Marah Abu Zuhri, died less than two days after reaching Pisa.
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The medical mission does not end on arrival. Families require housing, schooling, and cultural mediation. With Ukrainian evacuees from 2022 still in hospitals, Italian doctors warn of a looming strain. Still, officials insist Italy is prioritizing humanitarian principles over political hesitation, even as they caution against premature Palestinian state recognition without clear governance.
By contrast, the US has suspended all visitor visas for Gazans, including those needing urgent care, citing unspecified security concerns. Critics argue the lack of evidence invites suspicion and potential legal challenges. As Valente notes, Italy’s approach reflects labor-intensive compassion, while Washington’s freeze underscores a stark transatlantic divide in responding to Gaza’s crisis.
Read Giorgia Valente’s full report for the stories behind the statistics, including the voices of doctors, officials, and families caught in the middle.
