Saira Hussain: Medicine Under Siege, Famine, and Starvation in Gaza

In this episode of Not to Forgive, but to Understand, we are joined by Saira Hussain, an anesthetist who has worked in Gaza at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis through humanitarian deployments with Medical Aid for Palestinians and IDEALS.This conversation explores what it means to deliver critical care inside a collapsing health system. Drawing on firsthand experience, Saira discusses blockade conditions, mass-casualty medicine, famine and forced starvation, and the daily ethical and clinical decisions faced by medical professionals working under extreme constraint. The discussion also looks beyond the present moment, asking what rebuilding medical education, infrastructure, and professional capacity might entail in post-conflict settings.This interview was recorded in September 2025, during a period of enforced starvation in Gaza. It remains acutely relevant today, as United Nations reporting indicates that over 400 Palestinians have been killed since the October ceasefire, underscoring the ongoing humanitarian and medical crisis.00:00:00Introduction00:02:37Collapse of Gaza’s Health System00:07:01Why a Doctor Goes to Gaza00:19:36Practicing Medicine Below Standards00:26:00Patient Testimony Under Siege00:28:45Mass Graves Near Medical Facilities00:30:49Blockade, Aid Restrictions, Hospital Failure00:39:43Patterns of War-Related Injuries00:40:14Famine and Enforced Starvation00:44:04What Global Reporting Misses00:46:30Rebuilding Gaza’s Medical Community00:49:30Personal Cost of Medical Witnessing00:50:59Medical Ethics After Atrocity00:53:55Unprecedented Weapons and Trauma00:58:12Aid Sites and Civilian Death01:01:58One Image for the World