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'{{Short description|British-Palestinian plastic and reconstructive surgeon}} {{Infobox person | name = Ghassan Abu-Sittah | native_name = غسان أبو ستة | native_name_lang = ar | image = | caption = | birth_name = Ghassan Salman Abu-Sittah | birth_date = {{birth year and age|1969}} | birth_place = [[Kuwait]] | alma_mater = {{Plainlist| * [[University of Glasgow]] }} | occupation = | spouse = | children = 3 | family = | othername = Ghassan Abu Sitta | website = {{URL|https://drghassanabusittah.com/}} }} '''Ghassan Soleiman Abu-Sittah''' ({{lang-ar|غسان أبو ستة}}; born 1968/1969)<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Howeidy |first=Amira |date=October 24, 2023 |title='Gaza war does not compare to Syria or Yemen'|url=https://english.ahram.org.eg/News/510913.aspx |access-date=November 7, 2023 |website=Ahram Online}}</ref> is a British-Palestinian [[Plastic surgery|plastic]] and reconstructive surgeon and since April 2024 the [[Rector of the University of Glasgow]]. He is known for his work in conflict zones, particularly in the [[Gaza Strip]], and specialises in [[craniofacial surgery]], aesthetic surgery, [[Cleft lip and cleft palate|cleft lip]] and palate surgery, and trauma-related injuries.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://upaconnect.org/about/advisors/|title=About: Advisors|website=United Palestinian Appeal|access-date=9 January 2024}}</ref> Abu-Sittah first visited the [[Gaza Strip]] as a medical student during the [[First Intifada]] in 1989, and was a member of [[Medical Aid for Palestinians]] during the [[Second Intifada]] starting 2000. He also travelled to the strip during the [[Gaza War (2008–2009)|2008-2009 war]], the [[2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip|2012 operation]], the [[2014 Gaza War|2014 war]], and the [[2018–2019 Gaza border protests|2018 Great March of Return]]. Abu-Sittah has also worked in war zones in Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen. Abu-Sittah returned to the Gaza Strip after the start of the [[2023 Israel–Hamas war]], where he worked with [[Médecins Sans Frontières|Doctors Without Borders]] out of the [[Al-Shifa Hospital]]. He has spoken to news outlets participated in press conferences discussing his experiences. In January 2024, he travelled to [[the Hague]] to meet with [[International Criminal Court]] (ICC) investigators. ==Biography== ===Early life=== Abu-Sittah was born in [[Kuwait]] to a [[Palestinians|Palestinian]] family. His father and all of his forefathers were born in [[Palestine (region)|Palestine]]. In 1920, his grandfather Sheikh Hussain built a school with his own money in the small village where they lived and made [[education]] central to the family’s life. On 15 May 1948 the Zionist paramilitary forces [[Haganah]] [[Ethnic cleansing|ethnically cleansed]] the village were his family lived for generations and drove them into a refugee camp in [[Khan Younis]] that 2024 stands in ruins in the [[Gaza Strip]] ([[1948 Palestinian expulsion and flight]]−[[Israel–Hamas war|2023 Israel–Gaza war]]). The year after the [[Nakba]], his father graduated from medical school at [[Cairo University]] and moved back to Gaza to work with the [[United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East]] (UNRWA) in its newly formed clinics.<ref>''[https://mondoweiss.net/2024/04/dr-ghassan-abu-sittah-tomorrow-is-a-palestinian-day/ Dr. Ghassan Abu-Sittah: ‘Tomorrow is a Palestinian day’]'', 12. April 2024</ref> In 1963, his father came to [[Scotland]] to pursue his postgraduate training in [[pediatrics]] at the [[University of Glasgow]] and fell in love with the city and its people. And so it was that in 1988, Abu-Sittah came to study medicine at Glasgow University.<ref name=":8" /><ref name=":1" /> and completed a postgraduate residency in London. He underwent three fellowships: Pediatric Craniofacial Surgery and [[Cleft lip and cleft palate|Cleft Surgery]] at [[Great Ormond Street Hospital]] for Sick Kids (GOS), and Trauma Reconstruction at the [[Royal London Hospital]].<ref name="ips bio"/> ===Career=== After graduating from university, Abu-Sittah began working for the [[National Health Service]].<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=Woodward |first=Michelle |date=2020-12-15 |title=The Evolution of Conflict Medicine in the Middle East - An Interview with Ghassan Abu Sittah |url=https://merip.org/2020/12/the-evolution-of-conflict-medicine-in-the-middle-east-an-interview-with-ghassan-abu-sittah/ |access-date=2023-11-07 |website=MERIP |language=en-US}}</ref> In July 2005, he helped treat victims of the [[7 July 2005 London bombings|London bombings]].<ref name=":3" /> Abu-Sittah moved to [[Beirut]] in 2011.<ref name=":3" /> As of 2023, he lives in East London with his wife and three sons.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/12/15/gaza-ghassan-abu-sitta-recollections/|title=A doctor went to Gaza to help. What he saw there still haunts him.|newspaper=The Washington Post|first=Sarah|last=Dadouch|date=15 December 2023|access-date=9 January 2024}}</ref> He worked as the director of the hospital's Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Department from 2012 until September 2020.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" /><ref name=":4" /> In 2015, he also co-founded and co-directed the Conflict Medicine Program at the AUB's Global Health Institute.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":3" /> In 2021, Abu-Sittah worked as a lecturer at the Centre for Blast Injury Studies at [[Imperial College London]].<ref name=":2" /> In January 2011, Abu-Sittah joined the faculty of the [[American University of Beirut Medical Center|American University of Beirut Hospital]].<ref name=":3" /> He also provided remote assistance for surgeons working in the Gaza Strip.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2016-05-04 |title=In Gaza, hand surgery gets remote assistance from Beirut |language=en |work=Reuters |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-surgery-idUKKCN0XV27C |access-date=2023-11-07}}</ref> While in Lebanon, Abu Sitah's demonstrated his interest in Palestinian politics by writing Opinions for local papers.<ref name=":11">{{Cite news |date=2018-03-08 |title=The Palestinian people, the Authority, and the moment of truth| last=Abu-Sittah |first=Ghassan|language=ar |work=Al Akbar |url=https://al-akhbar.com/Opinion/245766/الشعب-الفلسطيني-والسلطة-ولحظة-الحقيق|access-date=2023-03-28}}</ref> Abu-Sittah first visited the [[Gaza Strip]] as a medical student during the [[First Intifada]] in 1989.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news |last1=Grierson |first1=Jamie |last2=Sherwood |first2=Harriet |date=2023-10-17 |title=Surgeon treating patients in Gaza says police in London 'harassed' his family |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/oct/17/surgeon-treating-patients-gaza-says-police-london-harassed-family |access-date=2023-11-07 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Halawa |first=Ahmed |date=2021-07-26 |title=Ghassan Abu-Sittah: A War-Zone Surgeon Sets Up a Curriculum for Conflict Medicine |url=https://www.al-fanarmedia.org/2021/07/ghassan-abu-sittah/ |access-date=2023-11-07 |website=Al-Fanar Media |language=en-US}}</ref> He was inspired to focus on conflict medicine by [[Ang Swee Chai]].<ref name=":2" /> Abu-Sittah traveled to Gaza as a member of [[Medical Aid for Palestinians]] to provide medical assistance during the [[Second Intifada]], the [[Gaza War (2008–2009)|2008-2009 Gaza War]], the [[2012 Israeli operation in the Gaza Strip]], the [[2014 Gaza War]], and the [[2018–2019 Gaza border protests|2018 Great March]].<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |last=Wedeman |first=Ben |date=2018-05-18 |title=He's treated thousands. The surgeon who keeps returning to Gaza |url=https://www.cnn.com/2018/05/18/middleeast/gaza-protests-surgeon-intl/index.html |access-date=2023-11-07 |website=CNN |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Issa |first=Perla |date=2018-08-01 |title=INTERVIEW WITH DR. GHASSAN ABU SITTA"There Is No International Community" |url=https://online.ucpress.edu/jps/article/47/4/46/54667/INTERVIEW-WITH-DR-GHASSAN-ABU-SITTA-There-Is-No |journal=Journal of Palestine Studies |language=en |volume=47 |issue=4 |pages=46–56 |doi=10.1525/jps.2018.47.4.46 |s2cid=158850801 |issn=0377-919X}}</ref> He has also worked in war zones in Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":3" /> On 11 April 2024 he was installed as [[Rector of the University of Glasgow]].<ref>[https://www.glasgowunisrc.org/news/article/gusrc/New-UofG-Rector-Installed/ Glasgow Uni] / per 14 April 2024</ref> === Israel-Hamas war === Abu-Sittah returned to Gaza on October 9, 2023, at the onset of the [[2023 Israel–Hamas war]].<ref name=":6">{{Cite news |last=Sebouai |first=Lilia |date=2023-11-27 |title='I performed six amputations in one night': London doctor recalls war horrors after 43 days in Gaza |language=en-GB |work=The Telegraph |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/global-health/terror-and-security/gaza-hospital-surgeon-ghassan-abu-sittah-child-amputations/ |access-date=2023-11-27 |issn=0307-1235}}</ref> During the war, Abu-Sittah worked with [[Médecins Sans Frontières|Doctors Without Borders]] out of the [[Al-Shifa Hospital]].<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Ashraf |first=Benjamin |date=2023-10-25 |title=Until the final breath: Ghassan Abu-Sittah's oath to Gaza |url=https://www.newarab.com/features/until-final-breath-ghassan-abu-sittahs-oath-gaza |access-date=2023-11-07 |website=The New Arab |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":5">{{Cite web |date=2023-10-30 |title=5 Doctors and Journalists Playing Vital Roles in Gaza's Humanitarian Crisis |url=https://en.vogue.me/culture/gaza-humanitarian-crisis-doctors-journalists/ |access-date=2023-11-07 |website=Vogue Arabia |language=en-GB}}</ref> He has spoken to news outlets and posted updates on [[Twitter]] about the hospital and some of the patients.<ref name=":5" /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Dagres |first=Holly |date=2023-10-12 |title=Gaza under siege: A doctor recounts the humanitarian cost of war |url=https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/menasource/gaza-hamas-seige-doctor/ |access-date=2023-11-07 |website=Atlantic Council |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-10-10 |title=Gaza hospitals running out of supplies for wounded as Israel's bombardment goes on |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/gaza-palestine-israel-strikes-hamas-b2427522.html |access-date=2023-11-07 |website=The Independent |language=en}}</ref> On November 18, after 43 days, Abu-Sittah returned to London, where he gave a press conference discussing his experiences.<ref name=":6" /><ref name=":7">{{Cite news |last=Abdul |first=Geneva |date=2023-11-27 |title=London surgeon says he saw 'massacre unfold' while working in Gaza hospitals |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/nov/27/london-surgeon-says-saw-massacre-unfold-working-gaza-hospitals |access-date=2023-11-27 |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> During the press conference, he said he treated patients suffering from [[White phosphorus munitions|white phosphorus]] burns, which the [[Israel Defense Forces|IDF]] has denied using.<ref name=":7" /><ref name=":18">{{Cite web |last=Pope |first=Felix |title=Gaza surgeon used as pundit by BBC, Sky and CNN wept as he praised terror leader |url=https://www.thejc.com/news/gaza-surgeon-used-as-pundit-by-bbc-sky-and-cnn-wept-as-he-praised-terror-leader-eo6hdpb2 |access-date=2023-12-02 |website=www.thejc.com |language=en}}</ref> Abu-Sittah plans to work with [[Scotland Yard]] to share his testimony of the situation in Gaza.<ref name=":6" /> In January 2024, he travelled to [[the Hague]] to meet with [[International Criminal Court]] (ICC) investigators.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20240108-uk-palestinian-surgeon-fights-for-justice-after-gaza-return|title=UK-Palestinian surgeon fights for 'justice' after Gaza return|website=France24|author=AFP|date=8 January 2024|access-date=9 January 2024}}</ref> On 16 October 2023, Abu-Sittah's family in London was questioned by [[Metropolitan Police|Met Police]] about his work in Gaza.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite news |date=2023-10-17 |title=Met Police question London family of doctor in Gaza |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-67135505 |access-date=2023-11-07}}</ref><ref name=":8">{{Cite web |last=Lampert |first=Nicole |date=2023-12-02 |title=Can the media trust this doctor in Gaza? |url=https://unherd.com/2023/12/can-the-media-trust-this-doctor-in-gaza/ |access-date=2023-12-02 |website=UnHerd |language=en-GB}}</ref> Abu-Sittah was an editor and co-author of the book ''Reconstructing the War Injured Patient''.<ref name=":2" /> He is a trustee of the [[Institute for Palestine Studies]].<ref name="ips bio">{{Cite web|url=https://www.palestine-studies.org/en/node/235728|title=Trustee, Senior Fellow: Ghassan Abu-Sittah|website=Institute for Palestine Studies|access-date=2023-11-07|language=en}}</ref> Abu-Sittah was elected [[Rector of the University of Glasgow|Rector]] of his [[alma mater]], the University of Glasgow, on 26 March 2024, winning 80% of the vote.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/24213251.gaza-war-surgeon-elected-rector-university-glasgow/|title=Gaza war surgeon elected rector of University of Glasgow|newspaper=The Herald|first=Gabriel|last=McKay|date=26 March 2024|access-date=27 March 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.gla.ac.uk/myglasgow/students/uofgrector/ | title=University of Glasgow - MyGlasgow - MyGlasgow Students - University of Glasgow Rector }}</ref> Abu-Sittah spoke at a ceremony for the one-year anniversary of the death of Maher Al-Yamani, the co-founder of the [[Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine]] in 2020.<ref name=":Times">{{Cite news|url=https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/glasgow-university-rector-abu-sittah-antisemitism-jewish-students-trz07vxd5|title=Glasgow University rector’s victory ‘could make Jewish students feel less safe’|newspaper=The Times |first=Sian|last=Bradley|date=30 March 2024|access-date=30 March 2024}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://gulfnews.com/world/mena/radical-palestinian-official-dies-in-lebanon-1.741041|title=Radical Palestinian official dies in Lebanon|newspaper=Gulf News|first= The Associated|last=Press |date=4 January 2011|access-date=28 March 2024}}</ref> A video showing Abu-Sittah appear to cry while delivering a eulogy at the event that includes the language "This is our only comfort: that even when Maher leaves, the Israelis will be afraid of Maher."<ref name=":18" /> In March 2024, the British [[NGO]], UK Lawyers for Israel (A UK-based, pro-Israel legal lobbying group) sent an open letter to [[Glasgow University]] which included a review of Abu-Sittah's public social media comments. The letter accused Abu-Sittah of reposting "an image commemorating a leader of the [[al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades]], [[Nasser Abu Hamid]], the day after he died, holding a machine gun, dripping with blood."<ref name=":22">{{Cite web|url=https://www.uklfi.com/glasgow-university-investigating-dr-ghassan-abu-sitta-candidate-for-election-as-rector|title=Glasgow University investigating Dr Ghassan Abu Sitta, candidate for election as Rector|website=UK Lawyers for Israel|date=20 March 2024 |access-date=2024-03-27|language=en}}</ref> He also wrote an article grieving for Abu Hamid, who had been convicted of multiple murders.<ref name=":Times" /> [[The Times]] reported that Abu-Sitta had compared Israeli leadership to “the psychosis of the Germans in the 30s and the 40s." The UK Lawyers for Israel letter also accused Abu-Sittah of re-posting an image comparing Israel to Nazis. Since receiving UK Lawyers for Israel's letter, [[Glasgow University]] has launched an investigation into Abu-Sittah.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.thejc.com/news/glasgow-university-investigating-doctor-who-praised-terrorist-pbxi49ct|title=Glasgow University investigating doctor who praised terrorist|newspaper=The Jewish Chronicle|first=Felix|last=Pope|date=20 March 2024|access-date=27 March 2024}}</ref> In April 2024, Abu-Sittah was slated to speak at a Palestinian solidarity conference in Berlin. He was questioned upon arrival on the country and eventually not allowed to enter. Shortly thereafter, about a minute into playing a video message from [[Salman Abu Sitta]] – Ghassan Abu-Sittah's uncle – the conference was shut down by Berlin police, who said it broke up the event because Salman Abu Sitta was "forbidden from being politically active in Germany." Organizers of the event had not been informed of this ban.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/04/12/germany-bars-doctor-who-worked-gaza-shuts-down-palestine-conference/|title=Germany bars doctor who worked in Gaza, shuts down Palestinian conference|last=Morris|first=Loveday|date=April 12, 2024|work=[[The Washington Post]]|archive-url=http://archive.today/2024.04.13-035503/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/04/12/germany-bars-doctor-who-worked-gaza-shuts-down-palestine-conference/|archive-date=April 13, 2024|url-status=live|access-date=April 13, 2024}}</ref> == Medical Textbooks == * ''The War Injured Child: From Point of Injury Treatment Through Management and Continuum of Care''. Edited by Ghassan Soleiman Abu-Sittah, Jamal J. Hoballah. 1st ed. 2023. [[Cham, Switzerland]]: [[Springer Nature|Springer]], 2023. * ''Reconstructing the war injured patient''. Edited by Ghassan Soleiman Abu-Sittah, Jamal J. Hoballah, Joseph Bakhach. Cham, Switzerland : Springer, 2017. == References == <references /> ==External links== * {{Instagram}} {{S-start}} {{s-aca}} {{Succession box | title = [[Rector of the University of Glasgow]] | years = 2024&ndash;present | before = [[Rita Rae, Lady Rae]] | after = Incumbent }} {{end}} {{University officials of the Ancient Universities of Scotland|state=collapsed}} {{Authority control}} {{portal bar|Biography|Palestine}} {{DEFAULTSORT:abu-sittah, ghassan}} [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:1960s births]] [[Category:21st-century British people]] [[Category:21st-century surgeons]] [[Category:Academics of Imperial College London]] [[Category:Academics of King's College London]] [[Category:Academic staff of the American University of Beirut]] [[Category:Alumni of the University of Glasgow]] [[Category:British paediatric surgeons]] [[Category:British plastic surgeons]] [[Category:British people of Palestinian descent]] [[Category:Imperial College Faculty of Medicine]] [[Category:Kuwaiti people of Palestinian descent]] [[Category:Médecins Sans Frontières]] [[Category:National Institute for Health and Care Research]] [[Category:Palestinian plastic surgeons]] [[Category:People of the Israel–Hamas war]] [[Category:Physicians of Great Ormond Street Hospital]] [[Category:Rectors of the University of Glasgow]] [[Category:World Health Organization officials]] [[Category:Palestinian refugees]]'