A young Palestinian woman who was flown from Gaza to an Italian hospital in a severely emaciated state for treatment has died, the hospital said.
The 20-year-old, identified by Italian media reports as Marah Abu Zuhri, arrived in Pisa on an Italian government humanitarian flight overnight Wednesday-Thursday.
The University Hospital of Pisa said she had a “very complex clinical picture” and serious wasting, which is when a person has significant weight and muscle loss.
On Friday, after undergoing tests and starting treatment, she died after a sudden respiratory crisis and cardiac arrest, the hospital said.
The woman was flown to Italy with her mother on one of three Italian air force flights that arrived this week in Rome, Milan and Pisa, carrying a total of 31 patients and their companions.
The Italian humanitarian convoy included three special flights provided by the Italian Air Force and transported dozens of patients from Gaza. Source: AFP / Andreas Solaro
All the patients suffered from serious congenital diseases, wounds or amputations, the Italian foreign ministry said at the time.
So far more than 180 children and young people from Gaza have been brought to Italy since the war began between Israel and Hamas.
The head of the Tuscany region, Eugenio Giani, offered his condolences to the woman’s family.
The hospital did not elaborate on what caused her condition, but Italian news agencies reported that she was suffering from severe malnutrition.
US stops issuing visitor visas for people from Gaza
The US State Department on Sunday AEST said it was halting all visitor visas for individuals from Gaza while it conducts “a full and thorough” review.
The move has been condemned by pro-Palestinian groups.
The department said “a small number” of temporary medical-humanitarian visas had been issued in recent days but did not provide a figure.
The US issued more than 3,800 B1/B2 visitor visas, which permit foreigners to seek medical treatment in the United States, to holders of the Palestinian Authority travel document so far in 2025, according to an analysis of monthly figures provided on the department’s website. That figure includes 640 visas issued in May.
The PA issues such travel documents to residents of the Israeli-occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip. The department’s website did not include a breakdown for the two territories.
Loomer’s statement sparked outrage among some Republicans, with US representative Chip Roy saying he would inquire about the matter and representative Randy Fine describing it as a “national security risk”.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations condemned the move, saying it was the latest sign of the “intentional cruelty” of the Trump administration.
The Palestine Children’s Relief Fund said the decision to halt visas would deny access to medical care to wounded and sick children in Gaza .
“This policy will have a devastating and irreversible impact on our ability to bring injured and critically ill children from Gaza to the United States for lifesaving medical treatment — a mission that has defined our work for more than 30 years,” it said in a statement.
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