4,000 Embryos Lost Under Bombardment: Investigation Documents the Destruction of Gaza’s Largest Fertility Center

Palestine24 – Report by: Zarifa Abu Qura

This investigation documents the destruction of Al-Basma IVF Center in the Gaza Strip, which held approximately 90% of the frozen embryos stored in Gaza. It draws on testimonies from couples who lost their embryos, eyewitnesses who were present in the area during the military operations, staff members at the center, and open-source evidence.

In December 2023, Al-Basma IVF Center, Gaza’s largest fertility center, was destroyed, resulting in the loss of approximately 4,000 frozen embryos, along with around 1,000 sperm and egg samples.

The loss was not merely a matter of numbers. Behind every stored sample was a family waiting for a child, some of whom had spent years undergoing fertility treatment and struggling to cover the cost of IVF procedures.

Eight Years of Waiting Ended Under the Rubble

“My heart hurt so much... all our memories, our hopes, and our future were there,” says Alia Abdel Rahman as she speaks about the embryos she lost at the center.

Alia and her husband spent eight years undergoing fertility treatment due to difficulties conceiving. She eventually became pregnant through IVF but suffered multiple miscarriages.

Now 36, Alia has yet to have a child. Before the war, she was preparing for the implantation of fertilized embryos stored at the center after undergoing the necessary medical treatment.

The cost of treatment placed a significant financial burden on the couple. Alia says she saved money, participated in community savings groups, and sold her gold jewelry to cover the expenses.

But after the center was destroyed and the embryos were lost, starting the treatment process again became nearly impossible, particularly after her home was also destroyed and her family’s financial circumstances deteriorated.

Testimony From Inside the Siege

Mohammed Halim — a pseudonym — was displaced with his family after Israeli forces entered Gaza City’s Al-Daraj neighborhood. They reached Al-Jalaa Street on December 2, 2023.

He says he passed Al-Basma Medical Center that day and that the building was still standing, with no visible damage.

The following morning, the family was surprised to find Israeli military vehicles outside the building where they had taken shelter, beginning days of siege, fear, and severe shortages of food and water.

According to his testimony, tanks and military vehicles were positioned near Al-Basma Center, while the surrounding area witnessed shelling, bulldozing, and fires that damaged homes and commercial properties.

Halim says that from the fourth floor, he could see a military position near the Al-Zaharna intersection that included bulldozers and tanks.

The family remained trapped for around ten days before they were eventually able to leave after the sounds of shelling and bulldozing subsided.

Parts of his testimony are consistent with that of another witness, who used the pseudonym Zaid Omar and was staying on Al-Jalaa Street during the same period. Both described the presence of military vehicles near the center.

What Does Open-Source Evidence Reveal?

In addition to residents’ testimonies, published material, news reports, and video footage related to Israeli military operations in the area were examined.

Geolocation analysis of landmarks and available visual material indicated the presence of Israeli forces and military vehicles in the vicinity of Al-Basma Center during that period.

Published material also documented the presence of an Israeli armored unit commander in an area several hundred meters from the center, coinciding with military operations on Al-Jalaa Street and surrounding areas.

A Double Loss

After Israeli forces withdrew from parts of Al-Jalaa Street on December 29, 2023, staff members at Al-Basma Center were able to reach the facility.

But the embryos they had spent weeks trying to preserve were gone.

The day after the withdrawal, Nora Abu al-Qumbuz experienced another devastating loss.

Nora had become pregnant with twins after undergoing embryo implantation at Al-Basma Center. During the war, she was deprived of regular medical follow-up, was displaced several times, and suffered from shortages of food and medicine as well as severe difficulties in transportation.

In the seventh month of her pregnancy, she went into labor and had to reach the hospital on an animal-drawn cart. After giving birth, incubators for premature babies were unavailable, and both infants died shortly afterward.

That was not the end of the couple’s loss. They had two additional fertilized embryos stored at Al-Basma Center, which were also lost when the facility was destroyed.

According to Nora, the couple had spent approximately $10,000 on fertility treatment over the preceding years.

Four Thousand Embryos

Photographs taken by a staff member after Israeli forces withdrew from the area reveal the extent of the damage inside Al-Basma Center, including damage to embryo storage tanks and the destruction of parts of the rooms and walls.

Etimad Jundiya, the center’s head of nursing, says the embryo laboratory and operating room were among the areas that sustained the most severe damage.

According to staff members, the storage tanks contained approximately 4,000 embryos, along with around 1,000 sperm and egg samples belonging to couples hoping to have children.

Dr. Bahaa Al-Ghalayini, the center’s director, says the facility was struck by three shells, two of which hit the genetics laboratory, embryo laboratory, and operating room.

Not all of the stored embryos belonged to patients treated directly at Al-Basma. Other fertility centers also used Al-Basma’s storage facilities to preserve their samples.

A Final Attempt to Save the Embryos

From the beginning of the war, one of the staff’s greatest concerns was the possibility of running out of liquid nitrogen, which was essential for preserving the frozen samples.

Dr. Mohammed Ajjour, who was responsible for the embryo laboratory, says staff attempted to secure an additional supply of liquid nitrogen sufficient for approximately two months.

According to his testimony, efforts were made to coordinate with ambulance drivers to transport the supply from southern Gaza to the center. However, the ground offensive was advancing at the same time, with tanks eventually reaching Al-Jalaa Street.

Initially, the greatest fear was that the liquid nitrogen would run out. Ultimately, however, the center faced a far greater threat.

From Destruction to Legal Accountability

The United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel concluded that Israeli forces attacked and destroyed Al-Basma IVF Center and that the reproductive material stored inside was destroyed.

The Commission also stated that it found no evidence that the center constituted a legitimate military target at the time it was attacked. As part of its broader assessment of the evidence, it characterized the destruction as an act intended to prevent births among Palestinians in Gaza.

Anjli Parrin, director of the Global Human Rights Clinic at the University of Chicago Law School, says what happened at Al-Basma Center carries significant legal implications given the nature of the facility and the reproductive material stored inside it.

Parrin says eyewitness testimonies and evidence concerning the presence of Israeli forces and their control over the area surrounding the center contribute to building a more detailed picture of what occurred during the attack.

Families’ Dreams Lost in an Instant

The destruction of Al-Basma Center represented more than the loss of a medical facility.

For families who had spent years undergoing treatment and waiting for the chance to have children, the storage tanks inside the center held what may have been their final opportunity to become parents.

Through the testimonies of women who lost frozen embryos, staff members who tried to save them, and eyewitnesses who endured days of siege around the center, the investigation reveals an impact of the war that cannot be seen solely in images of destroyed buildings: the futures of entire families were preserved inside cryogenic storage tanks — and then disappeared.

Mohammed Halim summarizes the severity of the days his family spent under siege by recalling that family members agreed not to remain together in one place, so that if some of them were harmed, at least one person might survive to tell what had happened.