How my family has survived the famine in Gaza
Palestinians wait to receive food distributed by an aid organization in Deir Al Balah, Gaza on 18 November 2024
Soha Ahmed Hamdouna writes in Mondoweiss on 19 November 2024:
For months, residents of northern Gaza have been living in extremely harsh and inhumane conditions. The situation has worsened recently. Initially, our goal was to find food, but now even finding clean drinking water is considered a stroke of luck.
One woman recently told me while we were waiting in line for aid, “Days have passed, and I could only get bread and water for my children. Waiting is killing me; I hope every moment that this war will end. Getting a chicken is a dream for my children and me right now.”
All the poultry and livestock farms have been targeted. My friend Iman Najm witnessed a massacre when she was staying with her family in a poultry and cattle farm owned by her relatives. In the middle of the night, it was struck by a missile. Iman woke up to screams and blood everywhere. Not a single chicken or cow was left; even her uncle was martyred in the massacre. It has been some time since it happened, but we cannot forget Israel’s crimes that affect humans, plants, and animals alike. The land became saturated with blood and rocket ash, and the farms now stand as silent witnesses to this catastrophe.
What hurts me more than my hunger is seeing my children asking for food and clean water. We live in times where even finding vegetables is a dream. I won’t even mention fruit, as it has become a distant luxury we cannot afford to think about. Yet the Palestinian spirit to persevere is strong. Let me share with you what I went through just to get a few tomatoes.