The Turkish Red Crescent has launched a new prosthetic and orthotic support project in Gaza aimed at restoring mobility for people who have lost limbs during the ongoing conflict.
The initiative, dated 11 August 2026, is being implemented in cooperation with the Artificial Limbs and Polio Center (ALPC) – Gaza Municipality and will provide 10 lower-limb prostheses to selected beneficiaries.
With a total project budget of US$18,000, the programme is focused specifically on below-knee amputees and combines prosthetic provision with fitting, training and rehabilitation support.
For Gaza, where the number of people living with traumatic limb loss has increased dramatically during the conflict, even relatively small, targeted programmes such as this can provide immediate impact for individuals who may otherwise face long delays in accessing prosthetic care.
Ten beneficiaries identified
According to the project information released by the Turkish Red Crescent, the programme will support 10 male beneficiaries with limb loss.
The prosthetic requirements are divided between:
- Eight right below-knee prostheses
- Two left below-knee prostheses
The beneficiary list was prepared with support from ALPC, which has been identified as the local implementing partner.
The project documentation notes that the first beneficiary arrived at the clinic on 6 August 2026, when measurements and diagnosis were completed, with prosthesis fitting scheduled to begin on 11 August.
Production time for each prosthesis is expected to be approximately five to seven working days.
US$18,000 allocated to the project
The total budget of US$18,000 is split between two types of below-knee prosthetic provision.
Three beneficiaries are scheduled to receive silicone below-knee prostheses, each budgeted at US$2,500, giving a total of US$7,500.
A further seven beneficiaries will receive standard below-knee prostheses budgeted at US$1,500 each, for a total of US$10,500.
This produces an average programme cost of approximately US$1,800 per beneficiary.
The figures provide an interesting snapshot of the cost of humanitarian prosthetic provision in Gaza, where procurement, supply chains, material availability and workshop capacity are all operating under extremely difficult conditions.
ALPC remains central to local delivery
The Artificial Limbs and Polio Center in Gaza has been identified as the main local partner responsible for implementation.
The centre has longstanding experience in prosthetic and orthotic services and, according to the project information, has the specialist capacity required to deliver prosthetic and rehabilitation support.
The proposed implementation process includes:
- Reconfirmation of beneficiary lists, measurements and medical eligibility.
- Clinical assessment and individual measurement.
- Production of prostheses according to technical specifications.
- Delivery, fitting, patient training and referral for rehabilitation when required.
- Preparation of final reports, photographs, delivery records and financial documentation.
This structured process is important because prosthetic provision is not simply a matter of supplying a device.
Successful outcomes depend on clinical assessment, socket fit, alignment, gait training and continuing follow-up.
A growing rehabilitation challenge in Gaza
The Turkish Red Crescent project comes against the backdrop of an extraordinary rehabilitation challenge.
The conflict in Gaza has resulted in a substantial increase in people living with traumatic amputations, including both adults and children.
At the same time, local rehabilitation services have faced severe pressure from damage to healthcare infrastructure, shortages of materials and components, limited mobility, workforce constraints and disrupted supply chains.
This creates a difficult combination: rapidly rising demand alongside reduced rehabilitation capacity.
For prosthetists and orthotists working in Gaza, treating new amputees also comes in addition to caring for existing prosthetic users who require socket adjustments, replacement liners, component repairs or entirely new devices.
The challenge is therefore not only to provide first prostheses, but to build sustainable long-term pathways for thousands of people who may require lifelong P&O care.
Silicone systems included for three patients
The inclusion of silicone below-knee prostheses for three beneficiaries is notable.
Silicone liners are widely used in transtibial prosthetics because they can provide cushioning, improve suspension and help manage the interface between the residual limb and socket.
However, their successful use also requires appropriate patient selection, fitting and ongoing access to replacement liners.
In humanitarian environments, the question of long-term availability is especially important.
A prosthetic system should ideally be selected not only according to its immediate clinical performance but also according to whether consumables, replacement components and technical support will remain accessible over time.
This is an increasingly important issue for organisations funding prosthetic programmes in conflict settings.
From device provision to rehabilitation
One of the stronger elements of the Turkish Red Crescent proposal is that it includes training and referral for rehabilitation rather than ending the process at device delivery.
A newly fitted transtibial amputee may require gait training, strengthening, balance work and education on residual-limb and skin care.
The prosthesis itself is therefore only one part of the rehabilitation pathway.
For patients with recent traumatic amputations, further complications may also include pain, wound problems, contractures, psychological trauma and changing residual-limb volume.
Close cooperation between prosthetists, physiotherapists, rehabilitation physicians and other specialists can therefore have a major influence on long-term outcomes.
Small project, wider significance
Ten prostheses represent a small number compared with the overall scale of limb loss now being reported from Gaza.
However, the programme demonstrates a model that could potentially be replicated by other humanitarian organisations.
A clearly defined local partner, named beneficiaries, transparent unit costs and an implementation process that includes clinical assessment and rehabilitation support can make smaller projects easier to manage and evaluate.
For international donors, this type of partnership can also help channel funding directly into established local clinical capacity rather than creating temporary parallel services.
That distinction may become increasingly important as Gaza moves from acute humanitarian response towards what is likely to be a much longer period of rehabilitation and reconstruction.
Building sustainable P&O capacity will be essential
The future challenge will be considerably larger than providing the initial prostheses required today.
Many people acquiring amputations during the conflict will need prosthetic care for decades.
Children will require repeated replacement devices as they grow.
Adults will need new sockets as residual limbs change, as well as repairs, component replacement and access to rehabilitation throughout their lives.
Sustainable response will therefore require investment in:
- Palestinian prosthetists and orthotists
- Local workshops and rehabilitation centres
- Reliable component supply chains
- Prosthetic materials and consumables
- Physiotherapy and gait rehabilitation
- Training and professional education
- Repair and maintenance systems
- Long-term follow-up
The Turkish Red Crescent’s latest partnership with ALPC is a relatively modest US$18,000 intervention, but for the 10 beneficiaries involved it represents something much more immediate: the possibility of standing, walking and beginning to regain independence.
Its project slogan, “Restoring Mobility, Restoring Dignity,” reflects a wider reality facing Gaza’s rehabilitation sector.
Providing prostheses is important.
Building the local people, infrastructure and systems capable of supporting amputees for the rest of their lives will be even more important.
- Turkish Red Crescent
- International Committee of the Red Cross – Physical Rehabilitation Programme
- World Health Organization – Rehabilitation
- International Society for Prosthetics and Orthotics
- IMEA CPO