September 15, 2025
Healthcare Under Attack: SAMS-Supported Clinic Destroyed in Gaza
On the evening of September 14, an airstrike destroyed a Syrian American Medical Society (SAMS)-supported clinic in northern Gaza. This facility had recently been relocated from Sheikh Radwan to the Al-Jundi Al-Majhoul area following evacuation orders. The building housing the clinic was struck and significantly damaged, resulting in the loss of essential medical equipment and supplies. Thankfully, no patients or staff were injured in the attack. However, the destruction of this facility means that approximately 1,600 medical services will no longer be provided each month through this clinic.
Healthcare workers across Gaza continue to face extreme dangers while providing lifesaving care. Two weeks ago, a SAMS female doctor was seriously injured while traveling to work at a mobile clinic in northern Gaza. This incident reveals the severe risks medical personnel face daily.
“The destruction of our clinic and the injury of one of our doctors highlight the unbearable reality faced by healthcare workers in Gaza,” said Dr. Aref Rifai, SAMS’ President. “They risk their lives every day to serve patients under impossible conditions. We call on the international community to act urgently to protect civilians and medical personnel, and to ensure that health facilities are never targeted. Healthcare must never be used as a weapon of war.”
SAMS continues to support its partners in operating clinics in northern and southern Gaza, while also running three mobile clinics—two in the south and one in the north. Medical staff on the ground report that urgent evacuation orders have been issued for residents and medical personnel in Gaza Port and the Al-Rimal neighborhood, with warnings of imminent military operations. As a result, medical teams are relocating south toward designated humanitarian zones in Al-Mawasi, though the situation remains extremely dangerous.
There is no safe place in Gaza. SAMS urgently calls on all parties to respect and uphold international humanitarian law, protect civilians and medical personnel, and ensure that health facilities remain off-limits to attack. We also call on the international community to act immediately to safeguard healthcare access for Gaza’s civilians, who are bearing the brunt of this humanitarian catastrophe.
Healthcare is not a target.
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