Marah Abu Zuhri

Their life

Marah Abu Zuhri was a 20-year-old Palestinian woman from Gaza. She was among the critically ill patients evacuated to Italy on a humanitarian flight organized by the Italian government, as part of efforts to provide medical care to Gaza’s most vulnerable during the ongoing war. Marah arrived at Santa Chiara Hospital in Pisa in extremely weak condition, bedridden from prolonged illness and hardship. Her evacuation highlighted both the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the struggles of patients whose access to healthcare was destroyed by the ongoing Israeli siege and bombardments.

Marah Abu Zuhri, born and raised in Gaza, was only 20 years old at the time of her death. Like many young Palestinians, her life was deeply shaped by the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where Israel’s blockade and repeated military assaults crippled access to healthcare, food, and basic survival. When Gaza’s medical system collapsed further after Israeli attacks on hospitals—including the destruction of parts of the Turkish-Palestinian Friendship Hospital, the only cancer treatment center in Gaza—Marah was selected for evacuation through a humanitarian corridor arranged by the Italian government.

She arrived in Pisa, Italy, and was admitted to Santa Chiara Hospital on the night of her evacuation. Italian doctors reported that she had been bedridden for a long period and suffered from extreme weakness, likely caused by malnutrition and lack of proper medical treatment in Gaza. Despite the best efforts of medical staff in Pisa, Marah died less than 24 hours after her arrival. Her story drew international attention, not only for the tragic loss of a young life but also for what it symbolized—the devastating impact of Israel’s siege on Gaza’s healthcare system and on the health of civilians, especially the young.

How they died

While Israel initially claimed Marah Abu Zuhri died of severe leukemia, Italian doctors found no evidence of the disease. Instead, they pointed to extreme weakness and long-term malnutrition as major contributing factors. Marah went into acute respiratory failure and suffered cardiac arrest, leading to her death less than a day after her arrival in Italy.

The circumstances surrounding Marah Abu Zuhri’s death are disputed. Israeli authorities asserted that she was suffering from severe leukemia and rejected claims that malnutrition played a role. However, Italian doctors at Santa Chiara Hospital in Pisa—where she was admitted immediately upon arrival—conducted medical tests that contradicted this claim. Professor Sara Galimberti, director of Hematology, confirmed that although doctors initially began leukemia treatment, they stopped once lab results showed no evidence of the disease.

Instead, doctors identified that Marah’s condition was the result of prolonged malnutrition and severe physical weakness. She was bedridden, unable to move independently, and required immediate nutritional support and transfusions. Despite receiving high-calorie nutrition and medical care, her fragile state led to acute respiratory failure, followed by cardiac arrest, which proved fatal.

Although no autopsy was performed due to her family’s religious wishes, Italian specialists maintain that chronic malnutrition and the collapse of Gaza’s healthcare system were decisive factors in her death. Her case became emblematic of the wider medical and humanitarian catastrophe unfolding in Gaza, where medical blockades, hospital bombings, and food scarcity have placed countless lives at risk.

Why we remember them

This record exists so that Marah Abu Zuhri, and all who are named in this archive, are never reduced to a number.

References & sources