Healthcare Under Siege: A UN General Assembly High-Level Week Convening
Refugees International, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, INARA, the Lutheran World Federation, the NGO Working Group on Israel Palestine, and Videre cordially invite you to join Healthcare Under Siege, a high-level discussion examining the protection of healthcare and medical personnel in conflict on the margins of the UN General Assembly high-level week in New York.
The event will explore the human consequences of attacks on healthcare systems and the urgent challenges facing medical workers and patients in conflict zones.
Drawing on the firsthand experiences of Palestinian and American physicians who have served in Gaza and are part of the wider Palestinian healthcare system, the discussion will address: the protection of healthcare workers, patients, and medical facilities; ongoing challenges of humanitarian access and medical evacuations; the restoration of the Gaza medical corridor; accountability for attacks on healthcare; and the challenges of rebuilding health systems following conflict.
This frank conversation will connect firsthand medical testimony with humanitarian, legal, and policy expertise, with the aim of advancing meaningful dialogue and action around the protection of healthcare in conflict.
Space is limited. Kindly RSVP by September 14, 2026.
PROGRAM
Welcome & Opening
- Representative, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America / Lutheran World Federation
Opening Remarks
- To be announced
Panel Discussion
Moderator:
- Arwa Damon, Former CNN Senior International Correspondent & INARA Founder
Speakers:
- Natasha Hall, Senior Advocate for the Middle East, Refugees International
- Dr. Thaer Ahmad, Emergency Physician
- Dr. Fadi Atrash, CEO, Augusta Victoria Hospital, East Jerusalem
- Catriona Murdoch, Director of Legal Accountability and Advocacy, Videre
- Dr. Nahreen Ahmed, Assistant Professor of Clinical Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, and emergency humanitarian medical doctor recently returned from Gaza
Audience Q&A