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Living conditions in the besieged Gaza Strip have deteriorated sharply as Israeli warplanes bombarded the coastal enclave of the Gaza Strip for a fifth day, forcing the Palestinian territory’s only power station to shut down after running out of fuel.
The United Nations agency responsible for Palestinian refugees says 11 of its staff have been killed in Gaza since Israel responded to the deadly Oct. 7 invasion of the Jewish state.
Hamas militants based in Gaza launched a multi-pronged attack that killed more than 1,200 Israelis. Palestinian health authorities said Israeli bombings have killed 1,055 people since Saturday.
By early Wednesday afternoon, main power to homes and hospitals was out. Residents are also worried about water shortages after Israel cut off ties with Gaza, with little fuel left to power groundwater pumps.
Residents also fear that fuel stocks for generators will soon be depleted and cannot be replenished, as Israel threatens to bomb any trucks carrying humanitarian aid from Egypt.
Gazans described incessant bombardments, rubble-strewn streets, collapsed buildings and many of the area’s 2.3 million residents seeking refuge with relatives or the United Nations.
“There is no safe place in Gaza. We are in constant fear,” said Refaat Alareer, a lecturer at Gaza’s Islamic University. He said his children were often awakened by the sound of bombs that shook their buildings and that the city “reeked of smoke, cement and explosives.”
Like other Gazans, they housed fleeing relatives in apartments that are now overcrowded. “We try to avoid going out to avoid contact with shrapnel or shells. Most roads have also been destroyed, including the one leading to the main hospital in Shifa,” he said.
Oxfam spokesperson Najla Shawa described how she, her family and 18 people who had taken shelter in her home fled their apartment on Monday night after receiving warnings that a neighboring building was about to be bombed. .
“I can’t describe the fear we felt,” she said. “When the building was hit, there were screams from the scene. The scene was very scary. We drove away and the streets were full of broken glass and rubble.”
Firas, a 31-year-old Gaza native who had high hopes for the future in the days before Hamas attacked Israel, won a scholarship to study for an executive MBA at the University of Richmond in Virginia — and now It seemed like a long shot prospect.
“Now everything is gone, everything is destroyed,” he said. Food, water and electricity supplies are currently in short supply and are expected to run out in the coming days.
The Red Cross advised him and his family to leave their neighborhood in the wealthier Al-Rimal district and live with family nearby. An Israeli attack destroyed the local mosque, causing collateral damage to his building.
Unlike the Gaza border areas and refugee camps, Al-Rimal was once considered relatively safe from Israeli reprisals in previous wars. “As we all know, the people here are from the Gaza family and are not involved in any terrorist activities, but now we too are being destroyed,” he said.
Gazans are bracing for more suffering as the bombing continues and Israel prepares for an expected land invasion.
“This is already very dangerous, and the ground attack will be even more severe,” Alaril said. “Even if we manage to hide, with little food and no water, we will die.”
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