UAE floating hospital at Al-Arish has treated 6,000 Gaza patients since 2023

The UAE's floating hospital at Al-Arish port in Egypt has begun receiving a new cohort of patients from Gaza, as the operation's cumulative patient count passes 6,000 since the conflict escalated in late 2023.

How the vessel operates

The vessel, deployed under the directive of President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, functions as a fully equipped acute care facility with surgical theatres, intensive care units, and diagnostic imaging. Al-Arish is the Egyptian port city closest to the Rafah crossing, so patients evacuated from Gaza reach the ship without overland transfer to Cairo hospitals.

The floating hospital alone has handled hundreds of complex surgical cases. Orthopedic trauma and burn care account for the largest share of procedures.

Staff rotations draw from UAE government hospitals including Sheikh Khalifa Medical City in Abu Dhabi and Rashid Hospital in Dubai, with surgeons and nurses deployed on four-to-six-week cycles. The Department of Health Abu Dhabi (DOH) coordinates clinical staffing. The Emirates Red Crescent manages logistics and patient coordination on the Egyptian side.

Scale of the UAE's medical response

The floating hospital is one component of a broader operation. The UAE has committed more than AED 2 billion in total aid to Gaza since October 2023, with medical care as the single largest expenditure category. That figure covers:

• Operation of the floating hospital and a separate field hospital inside Gaza
• Medical evacuations of critically injured patients to UAE hospitals
• Shipments of pharmaceuticals, surgical supplies, and prosthetics
• Telemedicine training programs for Gaza-based medical staff

The Ministry of Health and Prevention (MOHAP) confirmed that patients evacuated to UAE hospitals have been admitted to at least 12 facilities across Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and the Northern Emirates.

Workforce and operational timeline

For hospital operators in the UAE, the deployment cycle has direct workforce consequences. Each rotation pulls approximately 40 to 60 clinical staff from domestic hospitals for up to six weeks. DOH has offset this by fast-tracking locum arrangements and extending contracts for international staff already in the UAE system.

DOH has indicated the floating hospital will remain operational through at least Q3 2026, with staffing rotations planned through September.

Any extension beyond September depends on access conditions at the Egyptian border and the trajectory of ceasefire negotiations. Surgeons returning from deployment bring trauma experience rarely available in peacetime practice, a factor DOH has cited when recruiting staff for rotations.