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Gaza City – In the past 12 years, residents of Gaza have suffered four deadly Israeli attacks. After the most recent one, many Palestinians were once again forced to rebuild their broken homes.
The 11-day Israeli onslaught in May destroyed 1,148 housing and commercial units, partially damaged another 15,000 units, and caused the displacement of more than 100,000 civilians in UN-run schools and other host communities.
For many survivors, this is not the first time they have been forced to seek temporary shelter because they face the prospect of costly reconstruction.
Ramez al-Masri, 39, lost his two-story house in the blink of an eye for the second time in May, leaving his family homeless again. His home was bombed for the first time in the 2014 Israeli war on Gaza.
At around 3 am on May 14, a neighbor of al-Masri received a call from the Israeli military, ordering everyone in the vicinity to evacuate because the airstrike was imminent.
“On that night, my neighbor called me just to tell me a warning,” al-Masri said. “Before evacuation, I rushed to my bedroom and took our bag [vital] property. We fled hysterically to a nearby hospital for safety. We stayed till dawn. “
‘Completely destroyed’
After 11 days of deadly attacks in Israel, al-Masri’s family later took refuge in one of his relatives’ homes. After the ceasefire took effect on May 21, they returned to their house, but because the pipe below was broken, the house turned into a hole full of sewage debris.
“After I found out that my house was completely destroyed. I rented an apartment for my family for $200, including my wife and six children. It only had two bedrooms, one for me and my wife, The other one is for all my children,” he said.
Al-Masri’s house was previously torn down in the 2014 war, when Israeli troops invaded the northernmost area of Gaza and bombarded the area randomly, causing 140,000 houses to be destroyed.
The house was rebuilt three years later, and his family moved back in 2017. “My house is destroyed again. Will it take another three years to rebuild? Will I be homeless until 2024?”
Al-Masri said he was afraid to return to the “caravan”, small metal huts widely distributed in the damaged area, where he lived for three years before the house was rebuilt. His income can hardly support his family at ordinary times, and he cannot afford the high rents of vegetable vendors.
“It’s hard to live in a caravan in the summer [because of the heat],” he said, adding that he hopes the international community will help him and other homeless Palestinians rebuild as soon as possible.
Ramez al-Masri stands in front of the two-story house destroyed by his second Israeli attack [Courtesy: Ramez al-Masri]Homeless for the fourth time
Although the destruction of houses in the recent attack was painful for the Palestinians, Casualties even more so.
In May, at least 256 people were killed in Israeli airstrikes and artillery fire, including 66 children and 40 women. According to the UN report on the recent attack on Gaza, nearly 2,000 people were injured, including 600 children and 400 women.
Living near the border with Israel can have dire consequences. Mithqal al-Sirsawy, 40, built his house on land 700 meters (2,300 feet) from Israel. Since the war in 2008, his house has been destroyed four times in the past 12 years.
“My house has been targeted by Israeli tanks or their jets in all wars-in the wars that occurred in 2008, 2012, 2014, and in recent weeks,” he said. “How long will I endure this situation?”
Like every Israeli attack on Gaza, there is no place for refuge in al-Sirsawy except for schools run by the United Nations, even though these schools are not suitable for living.
“Living in a school is unbearable because the classrooms are crowded with people. Two or more families live in one classroom. The most difficult thing is that these schools do not have access to clean water,” he said.
Al-Sirsawy needs nearly $50,000 to rebuild his home-which is impossible for a spice seller with a monthly income of about $300.
“After each war, I received some assistance that was not enough to rebuild my house. The assistance was only one-third of the amount I needed,” he said.
He said: “Since the 2008 war, my life has become a mess. My family has been insecure in the house.” “When will the war in Gaza stop so that I can live safely at home with my family?”
“I don’t think it makes sense to rebuild the house, because as long as the war continues, everything we build here will be destroyed.”
The house of Mithqal al-Sirsawy has been destroyed four times in the past 12 years [Courtesy: Mithqal al-Sirsawy]‘Walk through the dead’
The 36-year-old photojournalist Alaa Shamaly has a different story. After he chose an apartment in what he considered to be the safest place in Gaza, his second home was destroyed in the war.
Shamaly’s experience in the 2014 war led him to leave the al-Shujayea community, believing that this area was one of the most dangerous areas when Israel attacked Gaza because it was close to the buffer zone.
“During the 50 days of the 2014 war, one day, Israeli jets and tanks bombed our community violently and randomly,” Shamari recalled. “Under frantic bombing from all directions, my family and I walked out of the house and fled west.
“Many houses were destroyed by their residents, and many others were murdered while trying to escape. We walked past the dead trying to survive.”
After that Israeli attack, Shamaly found a new home for his family, including his wife and five children.
They bought an apartment in the six-story Anas Bin Malek building in the center of Gaza, which is expected to be one of the safest locations for further strikes in Israel. But this proved to be untrue in the May attack.
“The Israeli occupation carried out a violent attack on the center of Gaza, destroyed seven large residential buildings, made hundreds of families homeless, and carried out the most brutal massacre on al-Wehda Street, where more than 40 people were murdered. ,”He says.
Alaa Shamaly, 36, lost his home for the second time in Israel’s May attack [Courtesy: Alaa Shamaly]
On May 16, the Anas Bin Malek building was razed to the ground, leaving Shamaly homeless for the second time in despair.
“The most difficult thing for me is that I have been repaying the installment of the apartment for the next two years,” he said, noting that his bank would automatically withdraw $200 from his bank account every month.
After his apartment was destroyed, Shamaly now lives in al-Shujayea with his extended family, facing an uncertain future.
“I will not be able to buy a new apartment until [loan] The installment payment has ended,” he said.
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