5 days ago
UAE-based Gazans share heartbreaking accounts of starvation, survival back home
When asked to sum up his daily life in Gaza, photojournalist Hammam Younis Al Zeytounia responded with just two words: 'Searching for the impossible.'
Younis, who is a neighbour of UAE resident Anwar Awni, recounted the heartbreaking reality that Gazans have to face just to survive.
The search for the impossible
In a voice message sent to Awni, shared with Khaleej Times, Younis described how food is almost completely unavailable in the markets, and where there is limited food, the prices are extremely high. Usually, Younis' sister would go out in search of food to bring home, but he said that markets have ceased to exist this week. 'Searching for food has become nearly impossible. To cope, we started planting vegetables in our garden to help ease the hunger of the children,' Younis said.
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He added that the aid distribution centre, set up by the American and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, has become a 'death trap', adding: 'We can't go there. Our injuries from a previous airstrike, which killed 13 of my family members, have left us physically limited and unable to move freely.'
Younis' family was killed in an airstrike in December 2023, two months after Israel began its relentless bombing campaign. 'Others [family members] were wounded; some managed to leave for medical treatment. Those who remain are more concerned with food and water than following the news. That shift in focus says everything about our reality,' he added.
Between the inflated food prices and the 'death trap' distribution centres, many Gazans have been suffering from severe cases of malnutrition and famine, in many cases dying due to hunger. On Wednesday, more than 100 human rights group warned that forced starvation of the Gaza strip's population was escalating.
Every day is a struggle
Yara Balsalat, a Gazan living in the UAE, has family members who are 'trying to make it through with whatever little they have' back home, she told Khaleej Times.
'Life in Gaza right now is incredibly heavy and uncertain. Every day is a struggle, people wake up not knowing if they'll have access to food, water, or even basic safety,' Balsalat shared. 'Families are doing their best to hold onto some sense of normalcy, but the situation has made even simple daily routines nearly impossible.'
Although her family has received some aid, it is inconsistent and not enough to sustain themselves. The distribution centres are packed tightly, overwhelmed with people to get their hands on one of the aid packages. 'People wait for hours in tough conditions, often just to be turned away because supplies run out,' she said.
Watching the famine, limited food stocks, massacres at aid sites, and the never-ending hums of the drones in the air, has been 'one of the hardest things' Balsalat has ever dealt with. She said she tries to stay in touch with her family back in Gaza as much as possible, but there are times when days go by without an update from them. 'When we do talk, it's short and to the point, mostly just [to make] sure everyone is alive and safe,' she stated. 'There's rarely time for anything more. Still, hearing their voices, even briefly, means the world.'
She said she is overburdened with worry, and every message or call is filled with fear, but also hope. 'I try to stay grounded and strong for them. Holding onto faith and staying connected, even in the smallest ways, helps me cope. And, of course, I keep them in every single prayer I pray,' Balsalat added.
'The death phase'
Earlier, on Sunday, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) issued a statement detailing the deaths of civilians approaching 25 WFP trucks carrying vital food assistance, which came under Israeli tanks, snipers and other gunfire.
'We are deeply concerned and saddened by this tragic incident resulting in the loss of countless lives,' it said in the statement. 'Many more suffered life-threatening injuries. These people were simply trying to access food to feed themselves and their families on the brink of starvation. This terrible incident underscores the increasingly dangerous conditions under which humanitarian operations are forced to be conducted in Gaza.'
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) also detailed crimes against humanity. An UNRWA worker stated that Gaza is in the 'death phase', explaining that everything around people is 'death, whether it's bombs or strikes, children wasting away in front of their eyes from malnourishment, from dehydration, and dying.'
As of Wednesday, 111 people died in the Gaza strip due to starvation and malnutrition-related diseases, the Gaza's Ministry of Health reported in a Telegram post. According to the Ministry, the number of deaths due to Israeli aggression has totaled 59,219 and 143,045 since October 7, 2023.
