NHS surgeon who volunteered at Gaza hospital details warzone conditions and questions over aid foundation

An NHS surgeon who volunteered at Gaza's Nasser Hospital has described what he called the warzone's devastating conditions, telling BBC Panorama that patients were arriving on wooden pallets and bleeding across the floors as medical facilities struggled to cope.

Dr Tawfik Omar travelled to Gaza in August with Medical Aid for Palestinians and was stationed just kilometres from two southern sites operated or linked to the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a group the BBC investigation linked to efforts to distribute aid in Gaza. Panorama examined allegations that the foundation—reported as being supported by the Israeli military and the United States—may have contributed to civilian deaths. Omar said the daily intake of casualties overwhelmed the hospital system as soon as doors opened, with the volume of patients far exceeding capacity.

Since the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation began operations in May, the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED) has recorded at least 1,300 Palestinians killed at or around its sites. The Israeli Defense Forces have said they are not aware of hundreds of fatalities caused by forces at distribution points and have characterized the figures as inflated and false. Omar recounted the scene inside the hospital, saying, “the smell of the blood is unbelievable, intolerable,” and describing patients lying on the floor with blood everywhere. He added that many cases involved complex vascular injuries and gunshot wounds, and that local residents reported seeing security guards or soldiers shooting directly at crowds around GHF points.

The BBC report noted that in June, Israeli outlets reported that IDF soldiers acknowledged some Palestinians had been killed while seeking aid, but the military at the time described the casualty figures as inaccurate and said lessons had been learned, with new instructions issued to forces. The BBC investigation framed these claims within broader debates about civilian harm and accountability in the Gaza conflict.

In August, United Nations experts called for the immediate dismantling of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, describing it as a disturbing example of how humanitarian relief can be exploited for covert military and geopolitical purposes in ways that contravene international law. The UN analysis highlighted concerns about the entanglement of Israeli intelligence, U.S. contractors, and non-governmental entities, arguing that robust international oversight—under UN auspices—was urgently needed. It warned that when war crimes are overlooked in exchange for temporary relief, impunity can become normalized, leaving civilians at continuing risk.

The reporting underscores ongoing questions about how aid organizations operate in conflict zones, and the ways in which humanitarian relief could intersect with broader military and political objectives. Health facilities in Gaza continue to face extreme pressure, with medical personnel describing scenes of mass casualties, limited resources, and the persistent challenge of delivering care amid ongoing hostilities. As international organizations call for greater accountability and improved oversight, the human cost of the crisis remains starkly visible in hospital wards and in the stories of frontline clinicians like Dr. Omar.