‘This isn’t resilience – it’s torment: At protests and on social media, Gazans raise a white flag
A child looking out at the rubble of a home destroyed by Israeli airstrikes in Khan Younis, May 2025
Nagham Zbeedat reports in Haaretz on 20 May 2025:
Worn down by loss, displacement and the daily struggle to survive, a growing number of Palestinians are directing their anger not only at Israel’s ongoing assault, but increasingly at Hamas, part of a shift in public sentiment being expressed through protests and social media posts.
“Gaza isn’t standing strong. Gaza is exhausted,” said Musa, a 25-year-old Palestinian from Khan Yunis who managed to evacuate to Egypt last year, just weeks before Israel seized control of the Rafah border crossing. His mother and three sisters remain trapped in the Strip, where they’ve been displaced multiple times since October 2023.
From Cairo, Musa has turned to activism on social media – not only to speak out about the conditions his family and others are enduring, but also to raise funds to help them survive. “I once raised enough money to buy them a tent,” he told Haaretz over the phone, referring to a donation drive that brought in around $1,000. “But they were forced to flee and leave it behind just a few weeks later. Nothing stays in place for long.”
Gazans have been praised in the Arab world for their sumud, the Arabic word for steadfastness that has become a cultural value for Palestinians. However, Musa struggles to understand the dire reality of life in Gaza this way. “Many have reached the point of envying the dead, believing that in death, at least, there is rest,” says Musa. “Ten-year-old children now know how to prepare their father’s body for burial. These are not people persevering with steadfastness. They are besieged, slaughtered and forgotten.
“We’re not legends or heroes. We don’t want to be resilient. This isn’t resilience. This is torment, misery and complete exhaustion,” Musa added.
This deep despair is reflected in a growing trend on social media, in which civilians in Gaza are publicly declaring their surrender and pleading with the outside world to intervene and help. Many of those making such statements are vocal critics of Hamas.
Omar Abd Rabou, a social and political activist from the Nuseirat refugee camp who has previously criticized Hamas, was interrogated by Hamas intelligence officials about his outspoken views in March. On May 16, Abd Rabou posted on his X account: “I, citizen Omar Abd Rabou, declare on behalf of myself and my family our surrender in this brutal war, and that we raise the white flag. We seek nothing but survival, and our only wish is to live in peace, safety and freedom.”
His message echoes a growing wave of similar statements shared by Palestinians in the Strip. Some have even included Hebrew and English translations in their posts, underscoring their desperation and desire to be heard beyond Gaza’s borders.
On Monday, Palestinians in Khan Yunis took to the streets once again to protest Hamas’ rule over the Gaza Strip, the ongoing war and to demand an end to their suffering. People chanted “We want to live – We miss having a bite to eat,” and “Where are the people of Gaza supposed to go? Stop the war and the displacement,” as they marched the streets of southern Gaza.
Some Palestinians are turning to protest marches as a form of hope, sharing videos of a recent demonstration where one participant urged: “We should all take to the streets and chant, ‘We all want to live, we don’t want to die!’ instead of being displaced over and over again.”
Another voiced their frustration with “promises, lies and this endless cycle,” demanding: “Open the crossing and let us leave. We don’t want to be heroes anymore, and we’re done living through tragedies. We’re tired.”
This article is reproduced in its entirety