Young woman had just arrived at Italian hospital as part of humanitarian mission.
A severely malnourished young Palestinian woman who was flown from Gaza to Italy a few days ago for medical treatment has died, hospital authorities said on Saturday.
Marah Abu Zuhri, 20, had arrived in Tuscany on Wednesday night as part of Italy’s latest evacuation of 31 seriously ill and injured young people from the war-torn Gaza Strip.
She was transferred to Cisanello University Hospital of Pisa, accompanied by her mother, as part of Italy’s 14th humanitarian mission to help sick and wounded Palestinians escape the besieged territory where they face starvation and bombing by Israel as well as catastrophic conditions in medical facilities.
The young woman had been suffering from a “very complex/compromised clinical picture” – the hospital said – and died on Friday after experiencing “a sudden respiratory crisis and subsequent cardiac arrest”.
Tuscany governor Eugenio Giani offered his condolences to the woman’s family, stating: “The regional health system and its staff, whom I thank, will always be at the forefront of ensuring maximum support for the people of Gaza.”
The latest patients to arrive in Italy from Gaza – all suffering from serious congenital diseases or significant wounds and amputations – were flown to Rome, Pisa and Milan on three special Italian air force flights.
Since January 2024, Italy has evacuated 180 sick children and young people from Gaza, along with their family members, for a total of 580 people.
International humanitarian agencies have warned that there is man-made, mass starvation in Gaza, blaming the crisis on Israel, which controls the entry of all supplies to the enclave.
In recent days Italy joined 25 other countries in signing an urgent appeal to the Israeli authorities to grant unrestricted aid into Gaza.
Last week Italy airdropped 100 tons of humanitarian aid into Gaza as part of a week-long mission coordinated by the Italian defence ministry.
