Copyright japantimes
GAZA STRIP - Gaza residents are suffering 'a volcano' of psychological trauma from Israel's devastating military campaign that has become clear since last month's truce, according to Palestinian mental health specialists. Two years of intense Israeli bombardment and repeated military incursions that local health authorities say have killed more than 68,000 people, along with widespread homelessness and hunger, have affected all of Gaza's 2.3 million inhabitants.The crisis is evident in the large numbers now seeking treatment from the Gaza City Mental Health Hospital team, now working out of a nearby clinic because their building is damaged, said its head Abdallah al-Jamal.'With the start of the truce, it was like a volcano erupting in patients seeking mental health services. Even the stigma that used to be present before, the fear of visiting a psychologist, does not exist anymore,' he said, describing 'a very large increase' in numbers from before the conflict.
