The act of evacuating one’s home is extremely emotional. Palestinians have a few minutes to pick up their belongings, important documents, food, water, and to decide where to go. Family memories cannot be carried in a handbag or suitcase. Photo albums and similar personal items must be left behind.
My name is Fidaa Abdullah Al-Shakhreet, I am 32 years old, from Beit Hanoun. On the fifth day of the war, my husband was martyred. I have now become both a mother and a father to my children.
My name is Tareq Fareed Al Hajj. I am 30 years old. It happened on Tuesday, March 19, 2024, the birthday of my little daughter Suwar, who turned 3 years old. I had promised her that her birthday would be special, but on her third birthday, the occupation killed her.
My name is Akram Abdul Nabi Al-Ajrami. I am 61 years old. I used to own a beautiful house in the Jabalia camp in the northern Gaza Strip. Now, I spend my time organizing recreational and educational activities for children and all residents of the tents. This is my daily life as a displaced person living in a tent in the city of Deir al-Balah.
My name is Nasreen Naeem Al-Hilu, and I am 47 years old, from Gaza City. My dream is for the war to end, to return to my home and rebuild it again, and for my Lord to grant me the strength to raise my orphaned grandchildren, educate them well, and protect them as they are the trust of my martyred sons.
My name is Mohammed Al-Taweel, I am 23 years old. I am from the Bureij camp in central Gaza. My dream is to finish my English degree, but the Israeli war displaced my family and took everything from us. Now, I cut hair to provide my family with funds to maintain our tent.
My name is Hajj Abu Sultan, I am 58 years old. I am from the Nuseirat Camp in central Gaza, where my home was bombed by Israel, resulting in the martyrdom of 10 of my family members and my wife, Ahlam Mohammed Abu Sultan. My dream is for the war to stop.
My name is Hala Al-Najmi, I am 13 years old. I am from the Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza, where the occupation forces bombed my home, killing everyone in my family except my brother and I. My dream is for the war to stop and for my brother to walk again.
Last year, AFSC brought together perspectives from Palestinian writers from Gaza in the book, "Light in Gaza: Writings Born of Fire.” The anthology features essays and poems of 11 Palestinian writers from Gaza to people around the world.
In his chapter in Light on Gaza: Writings Born of Fire--“Travel Restrictions as a Manifestation of Nakba: Gaza, the Path Backward Is the Path Forward”--Yousef Aljamal writes about the continuation of the Nakba as manifested through Israel’s control of Palestinians’ freedom of movement.
