Confronting an ongoing Israeli bombing campaign and the feeling they’ve been abandoned to face a war zone on their own, Palestinians in Gaza are turning to each other to share what little shelter, water, and food they can, even as truckloads of humanitarian aid remain stuck on the Egypt-Gaza border.
Compassion and generosity may not keep them safe, but residents say they believe this compassion is restoring some hope in a situation where little can be found.
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Room on the floor to sleep. A catering business-turned-community kitchen. Even as humanitarian aid is held up on the border with Egypt, Palestinians under siege in Gaza are relying on each other and sharing what little they have.
Just a few weeks ago, entrepreneur Tahrir Atrash ran the most bustling women’s salon in Deir al-Balah. Once famous for its manicures, hair-straightening, and bridal makeup, it is now known across Gaza as a safe haven. The salon and upstairs apartment houses five families and 30 people in 2,150 square feet.
When Azhar Abu Abdo and her family arrived in Deir al-Balah from Gaza City with nothing more than the clothes they were wearing, they were told there was one place to go: the salon.
“Tahrir’s acts during these trying times are a testament to the strength of the human spirit,” Ms. Abu Abdo says. “She is a beacon of hope, inspiring others to extend a helping hand and reaffirming the importance of solidarity in times of crisis.”
Amid missile strikes, explosions, and a total siege, two things are clear for the Palestinian residents of the Gaza Strip:
There is nowhere safe in Gaza.
And the only relief that can be found is in one another.
Why We Wrote This
A story focused on
Room on the floor to sleep. A catering business-turned-community kitchen. Even as humanitarian aid is held up on the border with Egypt, Palestinians under siege in Gaza are relying on each other and sharing what little they have.
Palestinians confronting an ongoing Israeli bombing campaign and the feeling they’ve been abandoned to face a war zone on their own are turning to each other to share what little shelter, water, and food they can.
In the south – the region to which the Israeli military urged 1.1 million residents of Gaza City and northern Gaza to evacuate as it ramped up its response to Hamas’ massacre of 1,400 Israelis – heavy bombing continued through Friday.
The border town of Rafah, where thousands of Palestinians and dual nationals have been waiting for the crossing into Egypt to open, continued to be hit with Israeli missile strikes. Israel says it is targeting Hamas positions, structures, and intelligence infrastructure.
A series of Israeli airstrikes that hit residential areas in Rafah Thursday morning killed 30 people, according to eyewitnesses and the official Palestinian news agency, WANA. As of Friday, Israel’s eight-day military campaign had killed more than 4,100 people, including more than 1,000 children, Palestinian health officials said.
Twenty trucks packed with humanitarian aid, which U.S. President Joe Biden had vowed would enter Gaza soon and which the United Nations’ World Health Organization described as a “drop in the ocean of need,” remained stalled on the Egyptian side of the border late Friday amid an impasse between Egypt and Israel over a cease-fire, aid distribution, weapons screening, and the exit of dual nationals.