About Us
Mission
The Gaza Cancer & Chronic Care Network (GC3N) exists so that people living with cancer and chronic illnesses in Gaza can receive continuous, specialist-guided care, even during siege, displacement, and system collapse.
Our mission is to deliver specialist consultations, coordinated follow-up, and medication access for Gaza’s cancer and chronic-disease patients via a hybrid model: local intake and case navigation in Gaza, combined with remote clinical expertise from a vetted network of international physicians. Governance, data protection, and evaluation are baked into the design so that what we do is safe, measurable, and worthy of scale.
Vision
We envision a Gaza where no patient faces cancer or chronic illness alone. Every individual (an insulin-dependent child, a grandmother with heart failure, a young parent starting chemotherapy) deserves reliable access to medical expertise, essential medicines, and follow-up that holds steady despite the shocks of conflict. GC3N strives to make that vision real by building a resilient, people-first telehealth system that restores dignity through dependable care.
Our Story
GC3N grew from frontline realities. In 2024–2025, as war and displacement tore through Gaza, clinicians observed a widening chasm: emergency and trauma responses (vital as they are) could not keep pace with the long arc of chronic care. Patients dependent on chemotherapy cycles, insulin regimens, antihypertensives, and inhalers began to deteriorate not because their diseases were untreatable, but because their supply lines and care pathways were broken. The question became urgent: what model could restore continuity and do so quickly, safely, and at scale?
Dr. Musallam Abukhalil, an internal medicine physician at Nasser Medical Complex, convened local colleagues and international allies to craft a response tailored to Gaza’s constraints. The answer was a low-bandwidth, specialist-supported telehealth network combined with a medication access fund and local follow-up team. The aim: to transform ad-hoc ingenuity into a structured lifeline, with clear roles, secure documentation, and performance metrics donors could trust. That concept became the Gaza Cancer & Chronic Care Network (GC3N), a physician-led initiative fiscally sponsored by the Democracy Council (U.S. 501(c)(3)) for transparency and oversight.
Our Team
Dr. Musallam Abukhalil, MD
Founder & Project Director (Gaza)
Dr. Abu Khalil is a Palestinian physician and humanitarian leader with extensive experience in internal medicine, emergency response, and health system coordination in conflict settings. He served as Health Technical Lead for Project HOPE in Gaza, overseeing medical strategy and health services across primary care clinics and Emergency Medical Teams. In 2024, he launched a humanitarian initiative, providing care to over 100,000 displaced people, and continues to shape its mission and operations. Dr. Abu Khalil founded and leads GC3N’s work in Gaza, overseeing strategy, coordination, and on-the-ground implementation.
Danielle Levi
International Program Director (Washington, D.C.)
Danielle is an activist and campaign strategist, and the founder of the Gaza Aid Collective. She has led domestic and international campaigns to expand civic engagement and has directed multiple humanitarian relief efforts in Gaza.
Arash Rahbary
Senior Manager for Evaluation Reporting (Los Angeles)
Bio coming soon!
Azadeh Ghafari
Monitoring & Evalution Director (Los Angeles)
Bio coming soon!
Nadine Rosales
Finance Director (Los Angeles)
Bio coming soon!
James Prince
Program Advisor (Los Angeles)
Prince is the President of the Democracy Council. He previously served as a senior professional staff member for the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee and as a consultant to the Palestinian Finance Minister, Prime Minister, and Monetary Authority.
Yaroup Ajlouni, M.D.
Implementing Partner
Dr. Ajlouni directs regional health, humanitarian aid, and resilience efforts through the Jordan Health Aid Society. With a medical degree, a Master’s in Politics, and an MBA, he combines clinical expertise with strategic leadership in complex humanitarian and development settings. He serves on multiple boards of global and MENA-based alliances, contributing to policy, advocacy, and collaborative action on health and social issues across the region.
International Advisory Committee
The GC3N International Advisory Committee (IAC) comprises prominent international and local volunteers from diverse backgrounds, including government, medicine, academia, and business. This volunteer advisory committee provides technical and strategic guidance regarding GC3N’s operations, governance, and funding on a technical, non-partisan, and non-political basis. They are also invited to private bi-monthly briefings about the program and related developments in Gaza.
Sam Ammouri
(San Diego)
CEO and Owner of Blue Horizon Property and Ammouri Construction. Previously, he served as Executive Director of the Palestine Investment Fund, COO of Continental Investment Group, and CEO of the Palestine Mortgage & Housing Corporation. Sam has extensive experience in investment management and business operations.
Zaher Bassiouni
(Brussels)
Director of Operations for Leaders International, Zaher is a Palestinian operations and management professional with over two decades of experience leading complex programs across nonprofit and private organizations. He specializes in strategy, operations, and program development.
Ziad Asali, MD
(Washington, DC)
Physician, Author, and Palestinian-American Activist. Dr. Asali previously served as Medical Director and Chairman of the Christian County Medical Clinic, Chairman of Physicians Health Association, and President of the Arab-American University Graduates. He founded the American Task Force on Palestine and co-founded the American Committee on Jerusalem.
Larry Garber
(Washington D.C.)
Currently a Policy Fellow at J Street, served as a senior official at USAID, including two terms as Acting Assistant Administrator of the Policy Bureau and as Mission Director for the West Bank/Gaza from 1999-2004. He was CEO of the New Israel Fund (2004-2009), has observed elections in more than 30 countries, and has taught at the National Defense University, George Washington University, and the University of Denver.
Joshua Gordon
(Los Angeles and NYC)
A prominent international telecommunications entrepreneur, Joshua is the CEO of Red Pocket Mobile and Co-Founder and Member of the Board at Democracy Council. Joshua previously held positions such as VP, Voice at Verestar, Director, International Business Development at Justice Telecom, and Degree Fellow at East-West Center.
Angela Hawkin, PhD (Washington D.C.)
Vice Dean for Research and Founding Faculty at the Johns Hopkins University School of Government and Policy. Previously professor of public policy at New York University and director of the NYU Marron Institute of Urban Management, professor of public policy at Pepperdine University, a research economist at UCLA, and an associate policy analyst at the RAND Corporation.
Major General (ret.) Arthur Denaro (London)
Retired British Army Officer. Former Commandant of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and senior leadership adviser. Arthur commanded the Queen’s Royal Irish Hussars and served as an Extra Equerry to King Charles III. He advised the Crown Prince of Bahrain and was a Trustee of the Prince’s Trust.
Nisreen Zaqout
(US)
Associate Director for Advanced Data Analytics at Bloom Ads Global Media Group. Nisreen grew up in Gaza and specializes in marketing analytics, econometrics, and performance intelligence. She helps organizations drive growth, efficiency, and strategic planning.
Michael Mahdesian (Los Angeles)
Chairman of the Board of Servicon and Operation USA, and Planning Commissioner of the City of Los Angeles, served as Deputy Assistant Administrator for the Bureau for Humanitarian Response at USAID, overseeing global humanitarian programming.
Sammy Nabulsi
(US)
Partner at Rose Law Partners LLP, Sammy is a Palestinian American humanitarian activist and real estate attorney in Boston. He advises Members of Congress on Middle East policy.
Michael Morse, MD (Washington, DC)
Assistant Professor of Clinical Psychiatry at Georgetown University School of Medicine. He trained at Harvard Medical School and George Washington University and develops mental health programs in the Middle East and Africa. Michael advances global health equity.
Cornelia Ravenal (New York)
Co-Founder and Producing Partner for Wilderness Films, Cornelia is an award-winning writer and producer of films, plays, and small screen projects. She founded the Women Independent Producers organization and has extensive experience in storytelling and production.
Nima Sheth, MD
Washington, D.c.
Director of Policy and Networks, The Reilly Group, Inc. and leads the Mind the Gap Initiative focused on advancing perinatal mental health policy. Nima has spent the bulk of her career serving vulnerable and diverse patient populations, both domestically and internationally. Nima served as the Associate Administrator for Women’s Services at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and Senior Medical Advisor in the office of the director at the Center for Mental Health Services.
R. David Harden
(US)
Founder of the Georgetown Strategy Group and was CEO of Souktel, a technology firm operating in emerging markets based in Ramallah. Dave is a veteran diplomat, international development expert with over two decades of leadership in U.S. foreign policy and global crisis response. As Assistant Administrator for USAID’s Bureau for Democracy, Conflict, and Humanitarian Assistance, he directed U.S. responses to humanitarian crises and political transitions worldwide.
Adnan Kifyat
(San Francisco)
Co-Founder & Partner of Blueprint Strategies Consulting, previously served in senior roles at the U.S. Department of State, including as Acting Special Representative to Muslim Communities. Adnan’s two-decade public service career includes posts at the White House, Treasury Department, and National Security Council, where he advanced U.S. counterterrorism, security, and financial policy engagements across the Middle East, Africa, and beyond.
Fiscal Sponsor
The Democracy Council (U.S. 501(c)(3)) provides fiscal sponsorship, overseeing disbursements, compliance, and audits. This ensures that donor funds are managed according to rigorous nonprofit standards while giving GC3N the agility to operate on the ground. Reporting cadence and documentation practices are aligned to partner requirements, with data and narratives verified against collected evidence.
GC3N adheres to professional standards of informed consent, confidentiality, and quality assurance. Data are documented securely; KPIs like patient volume, time-to-consult, medication fulfillment, adherence, and satisfaction are monitored monthly. A mid-term review and final evaluation ensure learning, transparency, and readiness for scale.