'Soon we'll have nowhere left to
run. Nowhere in Gaza is safe'
14/01/2009
Our correspondent and pregnant wife forced to flee
Israeli onslaught
We've left our home. Like 60,000 other Gazans, we've
taken our belongings and fled. Once again, we've become
displaced people. Soon, there will be nowhere to run to,
since nowhere in Gaza is safe. In the early hours of
Saturday, the bombing got louder and closer to our home,
and the rattle of machine-gun fire became more intense.
The tanks were not far off.
As I lay in the dark, I heard the sound of small-arms
fire and voices in the street outside. Since the Israeli
offensive began, our city streets have been deserted
during the hours of darkness; even the dogs that usually
annoy us with their all-night barking have vanished. The
voices were Palestinian militants: "Stay close to the
wall!" "Go by the wall!", I could hear them shouting to
each other. I didn't dare go to the window, fearing
snipers, but tried listening to the radio. The FM
stations run by Palestinian factions had no information,
just talk about the "heroic actions" of their militants.
My thoughts went to my wife, Alaa, so, at dawn, I phoned
her. Alaa is nine months pregnant and we evacuated her
last week to her parents' place in the western part of
the city. As I expected, she was in a state of panic.
At 6am, I looked out of the window. The entire
neighbourhood was leaving. From a residential complex to
the west, they were all leaving, carrying bags,
mattresses, blankets, personal belongings. Cars were
stuffed full of luggage, and everyone was rushing
because the sound of bombing enveloped us.
I used to say we would never leave our home, but when
you see everyone else on the move, how can you stay?
Barely a week since my father was killed by an Israeli
air strike on our small northern Gaza farm as the ground
invasion began, we were facing another terrible dilemma.
I thought of the Samouni family, killed last week while
sheltering in a house together, and decided we had to
go.
I took Alaa's jewellery, my laptop and phone, my notes
and papers, and some clothes. My mother, sisters and
their children drove away to take shelter at my sister's
house. I walked with the people in the street.
Leaving your home like this is pitiful; you feel almost
ashamed. But there's no mercy with the Israelis in this
operation. Previously, they weren't so harsh on
civilians. But now, although they say they target Hamas,
it seems they target anyone.
I am now at Alaa's parents' house. Here, there are 100
people in a building usually occupied by 20. The whole
district is overcrowded as most of those who fled other
parts of Gaza have come here. But late on Saturday
afternoon, the flyers warning of an escalation started
landing along with the bombs. "To the residents of the
Gaza Strip," the leaflets read. "The IDF will escalate
its operations in the imminent period against the
tunnels, military warehouses and terrorist elements all
over the Gaza Strip. For your safety and the safety of
your family you are required not to remain near
terrorist elements, the storage of military means, or
close to sites from where terrorist operations are
launched."
Well, we fled our home because of the militants – or
terrorists, as the Israelis call them – but now they
were dropping the flyers here too. Gaza is a small place
and the Israelis have shut the borders, so we can't
escape. Are they simply trying to terrify us further?
In the midst of the chaos, I managed to get Alaa to see
a nurse, and then to the hospital yesterday. The nurse
said Alaa is going into the early stages of labour. Her
blood pressure is slightly up, and she's dizzy. At the
hospital, the doctor said they may induce her labour on
Wednesday. For a few moments, amid the newborn babies in
the maternity ward, Alaa forgot our predicament and
looked joyful.
Before sunset last night, the Israeli forces dropped
more leaflets urging people to phone them with
information about rocket sites. I hear they are also
talking about the endgame. And we, the Palestinians,
shouldn't lie to ourselves: they have achieved some of
their goals. There are fewer rockets being fired across
the border into Israel, and we've heard that six Hamas
leaders have fled to Egypt by tunnel.
But what they have achieved has been at the expense of
the Palestinian civilians. Hundreds of children have
been killed or injured. They have seen their parents
terrified and powerless to protect them. In the future,
who will they turn to for protection? Even if the
warplanes are gone by the time our baby arrives later
this week, what Israel has done in the past two weeks
will keep the flames of this conflict alive for
generations to come.
©independent.co.uk
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/soon-well-have-nowhere-left-to-run-nowhere-in-gaza-is-safe-1301560.html