Displaced in Gaza is a collection of personal testimonies from Palestinians in Gaza who have been repeatedly displaced within their homeland since October 7, 2023. These stories were commissioned by the Hashim Sani Center for Palestine Studies at Universiti Malaya and were collected in May 2024. Displaced in Gaza aims to raise global awareness about the violent and forced displacement inflicted upon the Palestinians, and the impact this has had on every aspect of their normal life. Each story is unique, yet the endurance of the Palestinian people remains a common thread, linking stories of hope and loss together.
Under the Shadow of Loss
Asmaa Dwaima's moving piece about life, loss, and displacement in Gaza.
In Gaza, Students Yearn for Life Before War
Amid ongoing conflict, young voices from Gaza share their recollections of school days now lost and their hopes for returning to their classrooms one day.
The Night from Hell: A Harrowing Escape from Gaza City
"The entire area transformed into a volcanic landscape as the army's rockets pounded the ground, turning it upside down. We prayed desperately to survive until dawn, to not be buried under the rubble."
Caring for Two Orphaned Children of Gaza
My name is Aisha Osama Abu Ajwa, I am 30 years old. I am from Al-Zaytoun neighborhood. Before the war, I could barely provide for their needs to secure a decent life for my 4 children. Now, the crimes of the occupation added two orphaned children for me to care for and nurture after the occupation killed their parents. I am now a mother of 6 children.
I Lost My Son, My Support in This Life
My name is Fidaa Fathi Abu Yousef. I am 40 years old and live in Al-Nuseirat Camp. The occupation killed my young son Odai. My dream is to continue Odai's journey, providing my children a good life, education, a home, stable job. I hope war ends soon. Eight months of continuous killing exhausts us.
Israel Killed 10 Members of My Family in One Bombing
My name is Rehab Musa Al-Jamal, 54 years old, from the village of Aqir occupied in 1948. I live in Al-Nusairat Camp. Today, I live displaced with my relatives after losing my house and my eldest brother in an Israeli airstrike on our home.
The Occupation Killed My Grandchildren and Dispersed My Family
My name is Yusra Salem Abu Awad, and I am 63 years old. The occupation took the lives of three of my grandchildren who fled to Al Shati Camp, denying me the chance to bid them farewell. They were buried in mass graves in Gaza City.
I Lost My Beautiful Father at 12 Years Old
My name is Youssef Qawash, I am 12 years old. The occupation left me and my younger siblings without a father, without a home, and without means to support ourselves. We pray for an end to this war, and for the occupation to be held accountable for its crimes against Palestinians in Gaza.
3 Days Without Food or Water
I am a Palestinian woman, 80 years old, born before the Nakba in 1948. I was 4 years old when Palestine was occupied. I live with my deaf children and 27 grandchildren in my house on the eastern border separating us from our occupied lands. My family has been in danger all our lives because of our proximity to the border, but I consider this place my life and I feel a strong connection to it. Our demand is the liberation of our homeland and our return to our homes destroyed by the occupation during this oppressive war.
My Husband Was Martyred. There is no Body: My Story of Pain Caused by the Israeli Occupation
My name is Somia Issa Mustafa Saleh, 32 years old, from Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip. My husband was killed by an Israeli sniper while searching for water. I dream of being able to secure a dignified future for my children; they are my husband's trust to me, and they are all I have left in this life.
The Occupation Arrested my Sick Husband and We're Living in Suffering
My name is Shaymaa Ali Al-Eisswei, and I am 56 years old. The occupation arrested my husband during its invasion of the city of Hamad, north of Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip. We were besieged in our shelled apartment for several days. My dream is for all prisoners to be released from the occupation's prisons.
The Occupation Killed My Husband and Left Me With Our Three Children
My name is Shaymaa Al-Durra, I am 28 years old, my family and I have been exposed to all forms of injustice and genocide. After the death of my dear husband, Mohammed, I'm now left to care for our three young children by myself.
The Stolen Childhood of Palestinian Children
My name is Sa’id Khamees Al-Halabi, I am 12 years old. I own my own trampoline business at an UNRWA school in the Nuseirat refugee camp, which shelters thousands of displaced people. I make little money, and every day, I know I could be the next martyr. My dream is for smiles to return to all the children of Gaza.
Over 100 Displaced People have Sheltered in my Home Since the Beginning of the War
My name is Um Ashraf, I was born and raised in the Beach refugee camp west of Gaza City. This is my story of hosting countless displaced people in my home and witnessing the heinous crimes of the occupation's genocide of Gaza.
My Mother Returned Home to Die: the Injustices Against Elderly Patients in the Gaza Strip
My name is Ali Alowisi, and I am 29 years old. My mother dreamed of traveling and undergoing kidney transplant surgeries. My mother tried her best to be patient, believing that she might be able to travel soon, live her life normally, and overcome the disease, but she died complaining to God about the injustice of the occupation and the world's abandonment of the suffering of patients in Gaza.
The Need to Obtain Water is the Greatest Suffering We Are Exposed to in the Displacement Tents
My name is Nidaa Zaki Abu Toha, I am 33 years old. Our dream is to get food and water daily, to return to our house in Al Shati refugee camp west of Gaza City, and to be able to rebuild our house. I dream of educating my children and creating a beautiful future for them.
My Husband was Martyred While Searching for Food for Us
My name is Najla Hani Al-Kafarnah, and I am 28 years old. We were displaced from our home on the second day of the war on Gaza on October 8, 2023. My husband was martyred on the third day of the war, leaving me alone with the responsibility of raising three children and taking care of them. I dream of providing security and safety for my children, and for the genocide we are facing to end soon, and for the life of humiliation we are living in to end.
The Occupation Killed Every Member of My Family by Bombing Our Home
My name is Mohammed Ali Al-Bibi, I am 17 years old, a tenth-grade student. I used to live with my family in our house in the Zaytoun neighborhood in Gaza City. Our life was peaceful and beautiful before the war, but everything changed during this war, and I lost everything I had.
Displaced in 1948 and Today, Surviving Another Nakba and Genocide
My name is Mohammed Abdul Jabbar Abu Seif. I was 15 years old during the occupation of Palestine in 1948. Now, I am 91 years old, and I know that this war is larger than 1948 Nakba. My testament to my children and grandchildren is to never leave Gaza.
Under Siege in Khan Younis
My name is Manar Wadi, I am 30 years old. I am from the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza. I was under siege in Al-Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis for a month long. During that time, I saw death at every moment, and fled under from heavy shelling. I don't know how I am still alive.
Teaching 200 Children in Displacement Camps: How I Turn Displacement Tents into Schools
My name is Ikram Talaat Ahmed. I am 29 years old. This is the story of our great loss caused by the Israeli occupation during their war on the Gaza Strip, and my resistance to the occupation through education.
Today, I Sell Chips, but Tomorrow, I Will Be a Doctor
My name is Aseel Al-Hawajri, I am a 14 year old student from Juhar Al-Dik in Gaza, selling chips and sweets to provide my family with money to get by. Today we are displaced, but tomorrow the war will stop, and we will return to rebuild our homes. I will continue studying until I achieve my dream.
Widowed on the Fifth Day of the War
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.
Israel Killed my Daughter on her Third Birthday
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.
Creating Joy Despite Displacement
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.
Providing Medical Services Under Impossible Conditions
My name is Ahmed Nasr Halas, and I am 42 years old. The occupation destroyed the two pharmacies I owned in Gaza City. Despite this, I opened another one in my tent as I felt a responsibility to serve the displaced people of my nation.
Raising My Martyred Son’s Children
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.
The Israeli Occupation Steals the Dreams of Palestinian Students
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.
Birth and Death Under Israeli Bombs
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.
Only My Brother and I Survived the Bombing of Our Home
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.
Take Action Now
Call for a cease-fire and humanitarian access for Gaza now!
Since Oct. 7, more than 37,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's attacks on Gaza. Another 10,000 are estimated to be buried under the rubble. Over 2 million people have been displaced from their homes.
Contact us
If you have questions or concerns, please contact us at gazaunlocked@afsc.org.