A doctor’s personal and unfiltered diary of the war in Gaza
It’s 1 am in central Gaza, and emergency physician Salman Khalid is jolted awake by a text message that simply says, ‘mass casualty.’ As part of a three-member team providing care at al-Aqsa Hospital, he rushes to the scene, where he is greeted by a heartbreaking sight—a family of five siblings, all under 18, suffering from horrific injuries after their tent in a designated humanitarian zone was bombed while they slept. This despairing reality is a daily occurrence in Gaza, where innocent civilians suffer under the violence of settler colonialism.
In Gaza: A Doctor’s Diary, Salman Khalid offers a poignant and deeply personal journal of his month-long volunteer mission in Gaza. Over the course of September 2024, he captures the stark realities of life in a war zone, revealing the harrowing conditions faced by patients and medical professionals alike. With unflinching honesty, he reflects on the trauma, tragedy, resilience, and humanity that persist amid destruction and violence. This firsthand account of the brutality of the genocide in Gaza invites readers to witness the power of compassion in the face of unimaginable horror.
All profits from the book will be donated to Humanity Auxilium, an American and Canadian NGO that is one of 25 organisations worldwide that have paired with the WHO to get people and supplies into Gaza.
About the Author
Salman Khalid is a Canadian emergency room physician who volunteered on a medical mission at al-Aqsa Hospital in central Gaza in September 2024. He has over 15 years of clinical experience, and this was his first time practicing medicine in a conflict zone.
Fozia Alvi Foreword) is a Canadian and American Board-Certified Family Medicine Physician based in Calgary, Canada. She has devoted her career to advocating for the marginalized and underserved communities worldwide through the non-profit, international non-governmental organization, Humanity Auxilium, that she founded in 2018.
Diana Buttu (Afterword) is a lawyer specialising in negotiations, international law, and international human rights law, and a former spokesperson for the Palestine Liberation Organisation.
Table of Contents
Introduction
- Day 1
- Day 2
- Day 3
- Day 4
- Day 5
- Day 6
- Day 7
- Day 8
- Day 9
- Day 10
- Day 11
- Day 12
- Day 13
- Day 14
- Day 15
- Day 16
- Day 17
- Day 18
- Day 19
- Day 20
- Day 21
- Day 22
- Day 23
- Day 24
- Day 25
- Day 26
- Day 27
- Day 28
- Day 29
- Day 30
- Day 31
Conclusion