Despite an increase in aid deliveries in April and early May before Operation Rafah, aid groups say the volume of aid Israel is allowing into Gaza is nowhere near enough to avoid famine or the collapse of health care and health systems. Now tens of thousands more civilians are fleeing Rafah to areas with little infrastructure to care for them, The United Nations and aid groups say the situation has become more dire.
On Friday, UNRWA reported that some 110,000 people had fled Rafah this week amid intensified Israeli air strikes and growing fears that a large-scale military invasion was imminent.
One of the escapees, 42-year-old Saeda al-Nemnem, gave birth to twins less than a month ago. Her family, displaced from Gaza City, sent a relative to find a truck that could take them north.
But his relative, Mohammed Jojo, never returned. Ms. Nemnem said he was killed when Israel attacked the tractor he was riding on. She said he was “killed while taking us out of the area to a safer place”. “I feel like I caused his death.”
Despite the dangers on the road, she and her family of eight made their way to the southern city of Khan Younis and found shelter in a room attached to Al-Aqsa University’s main building. There, she said, they could hear the explosions of Israeli bombs, missiles and artillery.
“My kids’ hearts were beating so fast, I could feel them,” she said. She said it was the most intense bombing she had ever heard, “so close and so scary for me and my children.”
Manal al-Wakeel, 48, who helped prepare hot meals for the aid group World Central Kitchen, said she and her family had been suffering from Israeli airstrikes and ground fighting. Refuge in Rafah area.
On Tuesday night, Ms. Alwakr said she, her husband, their 11 children and other relatives found a truck that could transport them and their belongings, which included clothing, pots and pans and tents. suitcase for 2,500 shekels (approximately $670). Find another place to stay.
