The Israeli army announced on Wednesday, July 10, that it had ” completed “Its operations began on June 27 in Shujaiya, a neighborhood in eastern Gaza City that has become the scene of heavy fighting. Soldiers claim to have dismantled eight tunnels and eliminated ” tens ” of Hamas members. But this is clearly not the end of the fighting since leaflets fell from the sky on Wednesday called on the inhabitants of Gaza City to leave. Leave to go where? This question torments the inhabitants.
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With our correspondent in Jerusalem, Alice Froussard
Walid and his family, Gazans from the Shujaiya neighborhood, had stayed at home since the beginning of the war. But at the end of June, they had to leave in a hurry, surprised by the tanks of the Israeli army and this offensive on their neighborhood. Suddenly the situation became catastrophic, he explains. The Israelis invaded the neighborhood and we had to leave our house. We couldn’t take anything, just the clothes we were wearing. We had to leave everything behind.. »
For two weeks, they heard only the nearby sound of bombing, moved to another neighborhood in Gaza City, not knowing if their house was still standing. Now, the Israeli troops have left Shujaiya, but the family must still evacuate, leave the city, like all the residents. But to go where? ” asks Walid.
Other Gazans have returned to this ghost town. For them, it is an ordeal to see these scenes of desolation, the rubble, the homes reduced to rubble, the smell of death everywhere, explains Zhodiye, an elderly woman. Isn’t it enough all this destruction? Isn’t it enough that we are continuously displaced? Why are they leaving us in these conditions? What are we supposed to do? »
Everyone there feels devastated. We have the impression of an eternal recommencement. ” she says.
Read also“For three days, we have been living in absolute horror”: a resident of Gaza City, reduced to ruins, gives his testimony
For Antonio Guterres, continuing to fund UNRWA is essential
Every year, the United Nations brings together donors to UNRWA, the UN agency responsible for Palestinian refugees, for a conference at the organization’s headquarters in New York. This year’s edition is special, given the war that has been raging in Gaza since the Hamas attack in southern Israel on October 7, 2023. Antonio Guterres, the UN Secretary-General, calls on donors to continue funding UNRWA, which is facing a ” deep funding gap ” while the people of Gaza lack everything.
This year is different. Yes, we face a deep funding gap. But Palestinians see the gap widening in every area: in respect for international humanitarian law, in recognition of human rights and dignity for all. And for Palestinians in Gaza, it is not just a gap, but death, destruction and a complete breakdown of law and order. When we thought the situation could not get any worse, civilians are being pushed deeper into hell. In recent days, Israeli authorities have increased evacuation orders, civilian suffering and bloodshed. The extreme level of fighting and devastation is incomprehensible and inexcusable. The chaos affects every Gazan and all those who are desperately trying to help them. Everywhere, it is a potential death zone. It is high time for political courage to finally reach an agreement.
UN chief Antonio Guterres: ‘The extreme level of fighting and devastation is incomprehensible and inexcusable’