The British-Palestinian surgeon, Principal of the University of Glasgow, gave a speech in the UV’s Aula Magna on ‘The ecology of war: Gaza as the ultimate example’, in which he addressed the current situation in Gaza from his own experience. The conference was moderated by journalist and Professor Lola Bañón, with the participation of UV’s Principal Mavi Mestre and the Head of the UV’s Science and Human Rights Collective Nadia Yahlali.
On Friday, 31 May, British-Palestinian surgeon Ghassan Abu-Sittah held a conference in the UV’s Aula Magna. He explained that ‘the ecology of war is based on 3 dimensions’: the destruction of the biological, physical and social, the destruction of the past, present and future, and the social dimension.
In the social dimension, he stated that Israel has destroyed 12 universities, over 370 educational buildings and has murdered around 6,000 students.
According to Abu-Sittah, the Israeli army has three killing mechanisms: bombing, starvation – seen as ‘a very old colonial weapon, preventing international aid and attacking crops’ –, and the destruction of the future, by murdering children. He also spoked of the effects of mutilation, which require regular surgical and orthopaedic interventions throughout their development and into adulthood, which is extremely difficult given the lack of hospitals, health centres and health professionals. Then there are the resulting psychological effects.
The British-Palestinian surgeon estimated that 75,000 people have been injured to date. As a result, neither the injuries nor the associated comorbidities can be adequately treated. Starvation prevents tissues from healing properly, and the lack of asepsis to treat infections makes recovery more difficult.
Abu-Sittah pointed out that with the destruction of 69,000 homes, Israel aims to ‘create an inhospitable land, so that people have nowhere to go, as part of Israel’s genocidal project.’
After explaining the present and future elements of destruction, Abu-Sittah denounced the destruction of ‘200 historical sites dating back over 2,000 years’, as well as the cemeteries, as an Israeli genocide strategy.
