The reality of being a trauma surgeon in a war zone came crashing down on Dr. Feroze Sidhwa when the surgical unit where he was working in Gaza was hit by an Israeli airstrike.
asserted
he → come → airstrike
"I got scared that day, that's for sure," Sidhwa said, recalling the March 23, 2025, strike that hit the Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis.
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that → get → Younis
"The ICU has those like saloon-type swinging doors.
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ICU → have → doors
As I walked out, the door came back and hit me in the face and I was like, 'What the heck was that?'" he said.
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he → walk → face
"That was a bomb that hit the hospital and the Palestinians all recognized it immediately and, like, jumped on me to try and keep me safe."
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Palestinians → hit → me
The blast killed two people, including, Sidhwa says, one of his patients.
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Sidhwa → kill → patients
Sources told CBS News that Ismail Barhoum, a political Hamas member and spokesperson who was being treated there, was the target.
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who → tell → News
Sidhwa, based in California, has traveled to the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Ghana, Burkina Faso, Ukraine and most recently Gaza to render aid.
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Sidhwa → base → aid
He said he hopes to go back to Gaza early next year, but his mother worries about his safety.
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mother → say → safety
"For the first time in probably 40 years, maybe 30 years, she just broke down crying, screamed at me on the phone: 'They almost killed you last time you were there.
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you → break → you
Why are you going back?'" Sidhwa said.
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Sidhwa → go → ?
He said he told her, "I'm sorry, Mom.
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I → say → her
Somebody's got to go do this."
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Somebody → get → this
Rising danger for aid workers
More than 1,000 aid workers have been killed over the past three years, according to the United Nations.
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workers → rise → Nations
Violent incidents affecting aid workers have grown by more than 1,500% since 2000, according to the Aid Worker Security Database from the independent research organization Humanitarian Outcomes.
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incidents → affect → organization
Last year, Gaza, Sudan, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo accounted for the majority of incidents and killings, the organization's Aid Worker Security Report said.
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Report → account → incidents
In February, there were four incidents within 10 days in Sudan that resulted in World Food Programme partners or contractors getting killed or injured while delivering food.
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partners → be → food
In , which Russia invaded in 2022, World Food Programme assets, including a warehouse, trucks and marked armored vehicles, have often been targeted by drone attacks.
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assets → invade → attacks
Trauma surgeon Dr. Michael Samotowka travels to Ukraine six to 10 times a year.
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Samotowka → travel → times
"There's not a million people who do what I do.
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I → be → what
So if you bomb a hospital or a healthcare provider or a medic, you're taking out somebody that's providing a critical need," he said.
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he → bomb → need
Samotowka said he and his colleagues have an evacuation plan and security team with them.
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he → say → them
But in December 2023, a missile struck an operating room that he had been working in two months prior.
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he → strike → that
It's demoralizing," he said.
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he → say → ?
Still, he said there is nothing that would keep him from going back.
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that → say → him
"I really feel very passionately that what I'm doing is important," he said.
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he → feel → what
Samotowka said nations at war need to respect the Geneva Conventions, international treaties that protect civilians, medics, aid workers and others.
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that → say → civilians
"There needs to be some form of punishment for those who violate the law," Samotowka said.
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Samotowka → need → law
Sidhwa agrees and goes a step further, encouraging Americans to call their members of Congress.
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Sidhwa → agree → Congress
"One very practical way of protecting people is just saying that if you go out and kill doctors and nurses, then you're not going to get weapons from the United States anymore," he said.
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he → protect → States
The State Department declined an interview request from CBS News.
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Department → decline → News
It said in a statement that the U.S. favors accountability to anyone who attacks aid workers and hospitals and it condemns this type of violence.
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it → say → violence
The Aporia
