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Fleeing Amid Airstrikes, Gazans Find Few Places to Be Safe Fleeing Amid Airstrikes, Gazans Find Few Places to Be Safe
(about 1 month later)
BEIT LAHIYA, Gaza Strip — They fled by night, using their cellphones as flashlights on pitch-black roads as Israeli shells whistled around them. They carried a white flag and dragged crying children at a trot, a family of 25 headed for a relative’s house farther into the Gaza Strip. BEIT LAHIYA, Gaza Strip — They fled by night, using their cellphones as flashlights on pitch-black roads as Israeli shells whistled around them. They carried a white flag and dragged crying children at a trot, a family of 25 headed for a relative’s house farther into the Gaza Strip.
When dawn broke, they split the family among several more relatives. The grandmother, Naama Abu Hamad, 62, insisted on this. That way, she said, they could not all be killed by a single strike, and lose “an entire generation.”When dawn broke, they split the family among several more relatives. The grandmother, Naama Abu Hamad, 62, insisted on this. That way, she said, they could not all be killed by a single strike, and lose “an entire generation.”
As the Israeli military pressed into the Gaza Strip, taking over areas near the boundary with Israel, the hardships facing civilians deepened. Israel cut off the electricity it supplies to the strip, which is almost all the electricity that comes to Gaza, local and international officials said. For days a blasted sewage pipe has leaked into drinking water, but workers have been unable to fix it because of the danger from airstrikes.As the Israeli military pressed into the Gaza Strip, taking over areas near the boundary with Israel, the hardships facing civilians deepened. Israel cut off the electricity it supplies to the strip, which is almost all the electricity that comes to Gaza, local and international officials said. For days a blasted sewage pipe has leaked into drinking water, but workers have been unable to fix it because of the danger from airstrikes.
The number of Gazans displaced by the war to official shelters more than doubled in 24 hours, to 47,000 from 22,000, according to the United Nations, but the true figure is probably much higher, since most people, like Ms. Abu Hamad, take refuge with friends and family.The number of Gazans displaced by the war to official shelters more than doubled in 24 hours, to 47,000 from 22,000, according to the United Nations, but the true figure is probably much higher, since most people, like Ms. Abu Hamad, take refuge with friends and family.
“We expect the numbers to be increased in the coming hours as the ground incursion continues,” Adnan Abu Hasna, a spokesman for the United Nations agency that serves Palestinian refugees, said on Friday night.“We expect the numbers to be increased in the coming hours as the ground incursion continues,” Adnan Abu Hasna, a spokesman for the United Nations agency that serves Palestinian refugees, said on Friday night.
All day and into the evening, air and artillery strikes continued. Where to be safe seemed a matter of guesswork; at Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, members of one family said they had fled their home to an area they considered safer, only to be caught in a bombing at the hospital that killed a family member.All day and into the evening, air and artillery strikes continued. Where to be safe seemed a matter of guesswork; at Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, members of one family said they had fled their home to an area they considered safer, only to be caught in a bombing at the hospital that killed a family member.
Around noon, an airstrike killed three children in their bedroom. Three more strikes in the afternoon killed an additional four children. And after 9 p.m., an artillery shell killed eight people in their home, including four children. The death toll in Gaza since July 8 reached 288, including 62 children, the Health Ministry said.Around noon, an airstrike killed three children in their bedroom. Three more strikes in the afternoon killed an additional four children. And after 9 p.m., an artillery shell killed eight people in their home, including four children. The death toll in Gaza since July 8 reached 288, including 62 children, the Health Ministry said.
Families continued to stream into already-crowded Gaza City from the north and east, and into cities farther down the coast, to escape shelling along the strip’s perimeter. In the morning, donkey carts loaded with children and elderly people streamed along the main road from the north.Families continued to stream into already-crowded Gaza City from the north and east, and into cities farther down the coast, to escape shelling along the strip’s perimeter. In the morning, donkey carts loaded with children and elderly people streamed along the main road from the north.
The northern border crossing to Israel was ghostly and deserted, a lone, sleeping dog replacing the taxi drivers who usually wait under the trees. To the east, shells whistled over the rattle of machine-gun fire and the chirping of birds in the olive trees. Outgoing artillery cracked from nearby inside Israel, and the impact could be heard in the west.The northern border crossing to Israel was ghostly and deserted, a lone, sleeping dog replacing the taxi drivers who usually wait under the trees. To the east, shells whistled over the rattle of machine-gun fire and the chirping of birds in the olive trees. Outgoing artillery cracked from nearby inside Israel, and the impact could be heard in the west.
By afternoon in Gaza City, there were more people venturing out to sit on shady stoops or to queue for bread than had been seen during the first week of the war, which seemed strange during an escalation. But residents said it was because homes were so crowded with the displaced that people went outside for relief despite the danger.By afternoon in Gaza City, there were more people venturing out to sit on shady stoops or to queue for bread than had been seen during the first week of the war, which seemed strange during an escalation. But residents said it was because homes were so crowded with the displaced that people went outside for relief despite the danger.
On one Gaza City street, a small explosion atop a cinder-block apartment house signaled what the Israeli military calls a “tap on the roof,” a warning to evacuate. People ran farther down the block. Ten minutes later, a huge cloud of smoke rose over the building as a larger strike gutted it, sending bystanders scattering.On one Gaza City street, a small explosion atop a cinder-block apartment house signaled what the Israeli military calls a “tap on the roof,” a warning to evacuate. People ran farther down the block. Ten minutes later, a huge cloud of smoke rose over the building as a larger strike gutted it, sending bystanders scattering.
“It was a black night,” Abu Raed al-Najjar, Ms. Abu Hamad’s host, said Friday afternoon after visiting a corner grocery with two of his guests, young nieces still wearing the berry- and heart-covered pajamas that they fled in. “Flashes were lighting the night, and the house was shaking.”“It was a black night,” Abu Raed al-Najjar, Ms. Abu Hamad’s host, said Friday afternoon after visiting a corner grocery with two of his guests, young nieces still wearing the berry- and heart-covered pajamas that they fled in. “Flashes were lighting the night, and the house was shaking.”
In the house, the taps were dry and the electricity was off, leaving the family sweltering and bored during their daily Ramadan fast. Normally water and electricity are intermittent, Mr. Najjar said.In the house, the taps were dry and the electricity was off, leaving the family sweltering and bored during their daily Ramadan fast. Normally water and electricity are intermittent, Mr. Najjar said.
“When the water comes back on,” he said, “the electricity goes off, and we can’t pump water to the roof tank.”“When the water comes back on,” he said, “the electricity goes off, and we can’t pump water to the roof tank.”
Now, the electricity authority is reducing the supply from 12 hours a day to between three and six, depending on the area. The United Nations provides fuel for generators at hospitals and other crucial facilities, but officials are concerned they will break down if run nearly all day.Now, the electricity authority is reducing the supply from 12 hours a day to between three and six, depending on the area. The United Nations provides fuel for generators at hospitals and other crucial facilities, but officials are concerned they will break down if run nearly all day.
Gaza’s infrastructure has been deteriorating for years, with budget crises and Israeli import restrictions that mean spare parts are lacking for even routine repairs. Now, said Monzer Shublaq, the head of the water authority, repairs are falling even further behind, with workers refusing to visit sites without guarantees of their safety, a request they say has received no Israeli response.Gaza’s infrastructure has been deteriorating for years, with budget crises and Israeli import restrictions that mean spare parts are lacking for even routine repairs. Now, said Monzer Shublaq, the head of the water authority, repairs are falling even further behind, with workers refusing to visit sites without guarantees of their safety, a request they say has received no Israeli response.
He listed the worst problems: Raw sewage is pouring into the sea from a treatment plant damaged when a security office nearby was hit. Another sewer line damaged in a strike is contaminating drinking water. And a pipeline supplying 150,000 people has been out of service for days after also being hit.He listed the worst problems: Raw sewage is pouring into the sea from a treatment plant damaged when a security office nearby was hit. Another sewer line damaged in a strike is contaminating drinking water. And a pipeline supplying 150,000 people has been out of service for days after also being hit.
Many Gazans were more concerned with immediate survival. Issam Hamdona, 35, a medical administrator, hurried down a hill in Beit Lahiya carrying belongings from his home there, pausing to rest only when he reached a less exposed place. Behind him, a single fleeing car, stuffed to its roof with sleeping mats, passed on the deserted street. An elderly woman stared out the window.Many Gazans were more concerned with immediate survival. Issam Hamdona, 35, a medical administrator, hurried down a hill in Beit Lahiya carrying belongings from his home there, pausing to rest only when he reached a less exposed place. Behind him, a single fleeing car, stuffed to its roof with sleeping mats, passed on the deserted street. An elderly woman stared out the window.
Mr. Hamdona said he hoped the war would end with a deal for a long-term cease-fire by Hamas, the militant group that dominates Gaza and whose rocket fire Israel is seeking to end, in exchange for Israel’s lifting the near-blockade on Gaza’s borders that Palestinians call a siege.Mr. Hamdona said he hoped the war would end with a deal for a long-term cease-fire by Hamas, the militant group that dominates Gaza and whose rocket fire Israel is seeking to end, in exchange for Israel’s lifting the near-blockade on Gaza’s borders that Palestinians call a siege.
The deal, Mr. Hamdona said, should be backed by international guarantees, unlike the cease-fire that ended a similar war in 2012 without resolving underlying issues. In that conflict, he said, he fled an Israeli incursion and returned to his house to find it looted. Now, he said, his exhaustion made him ready to compromise on what he considered legitimate claims to all of British-mandate Palestine, most of which is now Israel.The deal, Mr. Hamdona said, should be backed by international guarantees, unlike the cease-fire that ended a similar war in 2012 without resolving underlying issues. In that conflict, he said, he fled an Israeli incursion and returned to his house to find it looted. Now, he said, his exhaustion made him ready to compromise on what he considered legitimate claims to all of British-mandate Palestine, most of which is now Israel.
“We’re not asking for Jerusalem,” he said, expressing, like many Gazans, a viewpoint different from that of Hamas. “All we want are our humanitarian needs.”“We’re not asking for Jerusalem,” he said, expressing, like many Gazans, a viewpoint different from that of Hamas. “All we want are our humanitarian needs.”