By Dr Salah AbdAl Aty
I am a lawyer from the Gaza Strip. Since the outbreak of the recent round of the Palestine-Israel conflict, my family and I have been forced to relocate time and time again. Now, we are currently residing in the capital city of Egypt, Cairo.
Since last October, we had endured three difficult months amidst the turmoil in Gaza. We became homeless and had to constantly flee from one place to another. Our original residence was in the northern Gazan city of Beit Lahia, but due to the conflict, we were compelled to move south. As the area near our new home was also targeted by bombings, we had no choice but to continue our escape to Gaza City. Later, we sought refuge in the Nuseirat area, with some of us staying with relatives while others residing in the Nuseirat refugee camp.
The bombings continued relentlessly, and we were constantly in danger. I could hardly forget that on Dec. 7, 2023, when our entire family stayed in the Nuseirat refugee camp, suddenly, the camp came under attack, with the nearest explosion occurring just five or six meters away from us. Our shelter was instantly destroyed, and all of my family members, including my four children, sustained varying degrees of injuries. What was even more devastating was that my mother, sister, aunt, and my brother’s family of three tragically lost their lives. After a long search and rescue, we eventually found their bodies amidst the rubble.
There was little time to grieve as we quickly rushed the injured to the hospital. Upon arrival, we discovered that medical resources were extremely scarce, and only critically ill patients were being admitted. Many severely injured individuals had no means of being transferred to other hospitals and were left to await treatment in critical condition, with no other options available.
Afterwards, our whole family moved from the Nusayrat district to central Gaza’s Deir al Balah. There, our temporary shelter was still not spared from the fate of being bombed, so we had no choice but to head to Rafah, the southernmost part of Gaza. Along the way, we lacked sufficient clothing and had to endure the winter wearing only thin clothes. We also suffered from a lack of food, often going hungry. With no shelter from the rain, we were frequently drenched. Everywhere we went, the streets were filled with sewage, dirty and chaotic. Countless houses had been destroyed, and those who had lost their homes, along with the refugees, set up makeshift tents. There was no electricity, fuel, or clean water for daily life… Everywhere, one couldn’t help but feel a deep sense of despair and fear.
By the end of December 2023, our family finally made it to Egypt through the Rafah border crossing. With the help of friends, we managed to rent a place in Cairo and finally settled down, allowing me to continue with my work. Back in Gaza, a volunteer team I used to lead, consisting of 30 members, continued providing humanitarian aid. Their dedication deeply moved and inspired me. I joined forces with them and approximately 70 Egyptian healthcare workers and volunteers to offer free treatment, particularly focusing on psychological support, to the injured in Gaza. Given the destruction of hospitals in the Gaza Strip, we established an online platform to provide free counseling services and medication to those in need. So far, we have served over 1,800 injured individuals, and our team continues to grow and expand.
My homeland, the Gaza Strip, is still suffering from the ravages of war. The conflict has left my family displaced and grieving the loss of loved ones, and it has inflicted great harm on everyone caught in its midst. Every day, I worry and long for my relatives who are still in Gaza, as well as for our fellow countrymen. I appeal to regional nations and the international community to work towards achieving an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza. The establishment of a truly sovereign and independent Palestinian state is a legitimate right and shared aspiration of the Palestinian people. Today, there is an increasing chorus of positive voices in the international community advocating for the two-state solution and recognizing the Arab Peace Initiative. More and more countries are acknowledging the statehood of Palestine.
I believe that peace and justice are the aspirations of all people. We look forward to the day when we can return to Gaza.
