An urgent and important Humanitarian event about Famine Medicine

An urgent Virtual medical conference will be conducted by the “Humanitarian Health Hub”, convening global health experts to dissect the anatomy of a man-made famine and forge a path toward healing. Also, they will be encouraged to take their ethical responsibilities.

Advocating for Gaza’s Famine Emergency

Date: 17, 18, 19 October 2025

Time: 18:00-21:00 Gaza Local Time

Board of Members

Prof. Mohamed Reda Awad Honorary President

Prof. Mohamed Youssef, President

Prof. Abeer Omar Vice President

Prof. Salma Afify, Vice President

Advisory Board

Prof. Hany Soliman

Prof. Maha Saber

Marketing Committee

Dr Osama Oudah, Head

Dr Eman Sayma Member

Eng. Hanin Wesam Member

Tasneem Metwally Member

Dr Haneen Abdelaziz Member

Scientific Committee

Dr. Arwa Badr Eldin Head

Prof. Ezzat Afify Co-Head

Organizing Committee

Prof. Sahar Talat Head

Dr. Arwa Said Co-Head

Public Relations Committee

Dr. Magdy Said Head

IT Committee

Eng. Mahmoud Gameel

Coordinator officer

Dr. Asma Gamal

Why This Webinar Matters

In Gaza, starvation is not a consequence; it is a tactic. This webinar brings together global experts to expose the deliberate use of famine as a weapon of war, its catastrophic health impacts, and the urgent moral and humanitarian imperative to act. From pediatric wards to global policy tables, our speakers will illuminate the scale of devastation and the pathways to accountability and relief.

Conference Objectives:

  1. To medically document the unprecedented famine in Gaza, creating a definitive archive for history and justice.
  2. To analyze the multi-system, long-term health impacts on the Palestinian people, especially children.
  3. To engage the international medical and humanitarian community in a dialogue of global ethical responsibility.
  4. To brainstorm and propose innovative, “out-of-the-box” solutions for immediate intervention and long-term health system recovery.
Prof. Mohamed Youssef, Emeritus professor of surgery, Cairo university
Mohammad Salim Al-Awa He is the former Secretary General of the International Union for Muslim Scholars
Munir Albursh, Director of the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza
Dr Ezzat Afify, Consultant Paediatrician at Prince Charles Hospital.
Dr Osama Mossalem, International Healthcare Management Consultant for WHO, UNFPA, UNDP, JICA and USAID..
Dr Ahmed Loutfi, Consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist
Gutbi Al Mahdi, Former ambassador in the MOFA, a minister of social planning, a presidential advisor and member of parliament
Dr Ahmed Elsarawy, MD, of Surgical Oncology, Cairo University.
Prof. Maher El-Masri, Professor & former director of the School of Nursing, Toronto Metropolitan University, Canada
Samer Abuzerr, Professor, Environmental and Public Health University College of Science and Technology, Khan Younis
Dr. Khamis Elessi, Professor & Head of Evidence-Based Medicine Unit, Faculty of Medicine – Islamic University, Gaza
Iyad Amawi. NGO and Palestinian Humanitarian Coordinator
Sari Bashi, Human rights lawyer and author
Caroline Durand, Associate Professor, History Department, Trent University
Neil Fournier, Associate Professor, Psychology, Trent University
Prof Zahid Pranjol, Associate Dean, Faculty of Science, Engineering and Medicine, University of Sussex
Medea Benjamin, Political activist and co-founder of CodePink and Global Exchange Human Rights Organizations
Sarah Leah Whitson, American lawyer
Alicia Koutsoulieris, Amnesty International Country Specialist
Hanan Qanan,Program Grants Lead at Islamic Relief South Africa (IRSA).
Heba Rashed, founder and CEO of Mersal Foundation
Dr Rana Dajani, Yidan Global Fellow at Harvard Graduate School of Education, is a professor of molecular biology
at the Hashemite University in Jordan.
Dr Huda  Mahmoud (MBChB, FRCP, PhD) specialises in.
Abdelrahman Shat, a Palestinian student
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Conference Program

Day 1: The Scope of the Catastrophe

starvation as a weapon conference brochureDownload

Session 1: Gaza By The Numbers:A Data-Driven Crisis

Chairperson: Dr Arwa Badr Eldeen

Moderator : Dr Asma Gamal

Topics:
  • Genocide By The Regulations: How The Occupational Military Bureaucracy Blocks Aid (10 min) | Sari Bashi
  • A Century of Famine: Historical Precedents, Survival Mechanisms, and Lessons for Gaza (15 min) | Prof. Mohamed Reda Awad
  • Gaza as a case study: The gradual Engineering of Famine (how it began and the calories control) (15 min) | Mr Iyad Amawi
  • Man-made famines in Modern History: case studies from Canada, the Soviet Union, and Nazi Germany (15 min) | Caroline Durand
  • Q&A (15 min)

20 min break

Session  2: The Body Under Siege: The Physiological Effects of Starvation

Chairperson: Prof Mohamed Youssef

Moderator: Dr Hanin Abdelaziz

Topics:
  • Q&A on accountability for war crimes in Gaza (10 min) | Sarah Leah Whitson
  • Effect of famine on hematopoietic system (15 min) | Dr Mahmoud Mohsen
  • Starvation and its effects on Gaza students: case studies (15 min) | Prof. Zahid Pranjol
  • Effect of famine on the immune system (15 min) | Dr Atef Abdelazeem
  • Q &A (15 min)

Day 02

Session 3: Gaza by the Numbers: A Data-Driven Crisis

Chairperson: Dr. Munir Albursh

Moderator: Prof. Abeer Omar

   Topics:
  • Hunger & Human Rights: Starvation as a weapon of war (10 min) | Alicia Koutsoulieris
  • Malnutrition rates, outbreaks of infectious diseases, maternal mortality and attacks on healthcare (15 min) | Prof Samer Abuzerr
  • Official famine numbers from Gaza main authority (15 min) | Dr Munir Albursh
  • Nutritional effects on the brain and brain development (15 min) | Dr Neil Fournier
  • Q&A (15 min)

20 min break

Session 4: The Invisible Wounds: Psychological & Social Trauma

Chairperson: Prof. Sahar Talat

Moderator: Prof. Ahmed Metwally

Topics:
  • Long-term neurological consequences of Starvation (15 min) | Prof. Khamis Elessi
  • Psychological trauma and the loss of the next generation: Children under fire and famine (15 min) | Mr Iyad Amawi
  • The Silent Mental Health Crisis in Starvation Zones and Ethical Responsibility for Psychological Recovery (15 min) | Prof. Sahar Talaat
  • Intergenerational Trauma (15 min) | Prof. Rana Dajani
  • Q &A (15 min)

Day 3: Responsibility and Response

Session 5:  A Failure of Humanity: Ethical and Medico-Legal Imperatives

Chairperson: Dr Ahmed Elmokhalality

Moderator: Dr Asma Gamal

Topics:
  • Starvation and US policy change (10 min) | Medea Benjamin
  • Man-Made Famine: What the International Laws and Medical Ethics Say About Them (15min) | Mohamed Saliem Alawa
  • A Sense of Urgency: Strategies and Instruments for Intervention to Address the Famine in Gaza (15 min) | Prof. Kotby Al Mahdi
  • The Famine in Gaza from the perspective of the healthcare professionals: insights from the global and Israeli medical communities. (15 min) | Dr Ahmed Elsarawy
  • Famine, Influence and Injustice(15 min) | Dr Huda Mahmoud
  • The Ethical Duty Of The Global Health Community (15 min) | Dr Abdelnaser Ibraheem
  • Poll (15 min)

20 min break

Session 6: Beyond the Box: Innovative Solutions for Recovery

Chairperson: Dr Hala Abdelkhaleq

Moderator: Prof Ahmed Metwally

Topics:
  • Buying Local, Saving Lives: A Case Study on Overcoming Aid Obstruction in Gaza (15 min) | Dr Hala Abd Elkhaleq.
  • The role of complementary therapies in conflict and low-resource settings (15 min) | Prof Ahmed Metwally.
  • Refeeding syndrome: The Art of Not Killing The Hungry(15 min) | Prof Hassan Hisham.
  • Resilient Health for Gaza: A Public–Private Partnership Model with Islamic Insurance, Digital Health, and Global Collaboration (15 min) | Dr Hanan Qannan & Mr. Abdelrahman Shat.
  • The Power of Individuals in Confronting Starvation as a Weapon(15 min) | Heba Rashed.
  • Hidden reasons for aid and blockade: Nutritious food and innovative solutions (15 min) | Mr. Iyad Amawi.
  • Demystifying the role of AI in Crisis Management ( 15min) | Prof Osama Mosalam.
  • Q &A (15 min)

Closing Remarks 5 min

Prof. Dr Sahar Talat

Dr Abeer Omar

Key Themes

  • Starvation as a deliberate tool of war
  • Pediatric and maternal health collapse
  • Epigenetic and generational consequences
  • Humanitarian access and aid obstruction
  • Global accountability and legal frameworks

Who Should Attend?

  • Medical and Healthcare Professionals (Doctors, Nurses, Public Health Experts)
  • Medical and Public Health Students
  • Humanitarian Aid and NGO Workers
  • Journalists and Media Professionals
  • Policy Makers, Diplomats, and Government Officials
  • Anyone committed to understanding and acting upon this humanitarian crisis.

This is not just a webinar—it’s a mobilization.

Join us to amplify the voices of Gaza’s health professionals, demand humanitarian access, and push for global accountability.

Silence is complicity… Action is imperative.

Say stop to starvation

Join us now