As Israel issues sweeping new forced displacement orders across the Gaza Strip, Palestinians express feelings of exhaustion and hopelessness at the prospect of being uprooted yet again.
Many are gathering their few belongings and setting off in search of new shelters, despite the lack of safe spaces in the war-torn enclave. Others say they simply cannot bear to move again.
When ordered to leave Jabalia in northern Gaza, Ihab Suliman and his family could only grab some food and blankets before heading south on March 19. It was their eighth time fleeing in the past 18 months of war.
“Life has lost all meaning,” said Suliman, a former university professor. “For us, life and death have become indistinguishable.”
Suliman is among the tens of thousands of Palestinians who have fled temporary shelters since Israel broke a two-month ceasefire on March 18, launching renewed bombardments and ground assaults.
Faced with the daunting prospect of starting over, some Palestinians are choosing to ignore the latest displacement orders—even if it means risking their lives.
“After a year and a half of war that has exhausted everyone—children and their parents alike—people are physically and mentally drained,” said Rosalia Bollen, a communication specialist at UNICEF.
For the past month, Israel has blocked all food, fuel, and supplies from entering Gaza, and aid groups report there are no more tents or shelter supplies available to assist the newly displaced.
On Tuesday, the World Food Programme shut down all its bakeries in Gaza, which hundreds of thousands depend on for bread, due to a shortage of flour.
Israel’s forced displacement orders cover vast areas of the Strip, including large parts of Gaza City and towns in the north, sections of the southern city of Khan Younis, and nearly the entire southern city of Rafah and its surrounding areas.
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