Hamas officials have been taking bribes to put healthy people on emergency medical evacuation lists, The Telegraph reported on Thursday.
The Telegraph, citing unproven testimonies from Gazans with ill or injured family members, said that Hamas is taking bribes from healthy individuals to get on the medical evacuation list. Gazans with family members on the list say the bribes are corrupting the system through which people leave the strip to receive medical treatment overseas.
The report alleged that some Gazans who are healthy have gotten hold of forged medical documents, which claim that they are severely injured or ill, in order to get evacuated from Gaza.
In some testimonies, some Gazans who have family members who are genuinely sick said their loved ones got moved up in the queue after their families bribed Hamas officials.
Notably, the health authorities in Gaza are run by Hamas, meaning that the organization making the list for medical evacuation is inherently biased and corrupt. Additionally, in the early days of the Israel-Hamas War, dozens of reports emerged that Gazans were bribing Hamas and guards at the Egyptian border to escape Gaza.
The Telegraph claimed that more than 20,000 patients need medical help abroad, but that only 20 patients are allowed out of Gaza by the IDF on a daily basis.
The report added that despite the fact that 173,000 people were allegedly wounded in the Gaza war, only 11,500 of them were evacuated.
COGAT's website says that more than 5,000 people were evacuated abroad since 2024, and claimed that "Israel did not impose any limitation on the number of Gazans who may exit Gaza."
Gazan patients longlisted for medical evacuations over citizens who bribe Hamas
Some people who spoke to The Telegraph claimed that they were unable to get their loved ones the help they needed because they were unable to evacuate.
“My mother spent most of her treatment lying in a miserable corridor… I was forced to buy the simplest intravenous and muscular painkillers with my own money, even though the Ministry of Health is supposed to provide them,” Ahmad Ghanim, a Gaza City resident who claims to be a journalist, told The Telegraph.
“And today, after everything that has happened, I am shocked to find that one of those who falsely call themselves an ‘influencer’ left for treatment abroad via a medical referral written by a doctor in the Ministry of Health itself.
“And for what ailment? Just a kidney stone! This ‘influencer,’ who raised hundreds of thousands of dollars, left unjustly, taking my mother’s spot – and perhaps the spot of another patient who is dying."
Ramzi Herzallah, a Gazan civilian who now lives in Belgium, had previously organized protests in front of Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza and Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis.
He claims that he “discovered that healthy individuals were being evacuated instead of [genuine] patients, using forged medical reports” while he was trying to get his father medical treatment abroad.
“I promised myself that I would speak out and expose the corruption of health officials in Gaza who accept money in exchange for prioritizing certain names,” Herzallah said.
Who is in charge of medical evacuations from Gaza?
At a recent protest at the Al-Shifa Hospital Medical complex in central Gaza, the hospital's director, Dr. Mohammed Abu Selmiya, reportedly tried to calm down an angry crowd.
“I am aware of the extent of the pain you are feeling and the tragedy that the patients’ families are living through … my office door is open at any time,” he said, as quoted by the Telegraph.
“However, you are all aware that the issue of medical referrals is extremely complex; more than 20,000 patients are in need of them, while the Israeli side approves only approximately 20 per day.”
He did not want to discuss bribery with the protesters.
“It is unreasonable that only dozens are allowed to leave; it is ineffective. A meeting is currently underway with the World Health Organization regarding this issue: either they increase the number of patients allowed to evacuate, or the medical evacuation program should be canceled entirely," he reportedly said.
While local representatives from the World Health Organization are meant to have some influence over the list, the organization claims that it has "no influence" and that its role is solely "limited to coordination and logistical support."
“WHO and its staff have no influence over, and are not involved in, the prioritization of patients approved for medical evacuation. Medical evacuations are led by the [Hamas-run Gaza]Ministry of Health. WHO’s role is strictly supportive, limited to coordination and logistical support, carried out in close collaboration with various stakeholders and health partners, to ensure the safe, dignified, and orderly transfer of patients from Gaza to the relevant crossings," a spokesperson told The Telegraph.
The Hamas Health Ministry claimed that it would create a committee to “verify medical cases” after the allegations of corruption surfaced.