by Ruwaida Kamal Amer and Mahmoud Mushtaha at 972 Mag
Tens of thousands of Gazans from the northern parts of the strip have been fleeing southward since Friday morning in a state of panic, fear, and anger, after Israel ordered everyone in the north to evacuate within 24 hours. The attempted displacement of more than a million people feels like another Nakba, and it is the same scene that many of the elderly in Gaza witnessed during the 1948 war.
Social media platforms — to the extent that Gazans are able to access them, after Israel shut off electricity and prevented any fuel supplies that could power generators from entering the strip — were flooded with calls for people living in southern parts of Gaza to prepare their homes to welcome the refugees. Given how strongly connected we are across the territory, many people are seeking refuge in the homes of family members and close friends. But as the refugees search for places to shelter, they all know that there is no safe place in Gaza.
The fear and anxiety were evident in the convoy of displaced people heading down Salah al-Din Street, which connects the Gaza Strip from north to south. Children were crying, and their mothers were praying intensely for this nightmare to end.
The faces of the new refugees tell the whole story. They all left their homes to come to the unknown. No one can speak, no one is able to express feelings or emotions. Only their eyes speak of the amount of anger and resentment at what the Israeli occupation is doing to them, and to Gaza.
Even before Israel’s evacuation order early Friday,…
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