Gaza City’s Shujaiya faces renewed displacement by Israel

“A severe and urgent warning to the residents of Gaza City’s eastern district al-Shujaiya in the neighbourhoods of al-Jadidah, al-Turkman, and al-Zeitoun al-Sharqi. The IDF is operating with extreme force in your area. For your safety, you must evacuate immediately.”

With these words, the Israeli army issued new orders, forcing al-Shujaiya‘s residents to flee once again.

For many, this was not the first warning by the Israeli military, and another chapter in a relentless cycle of forced displacement.

Before this latest Israeli attack, Intisar Habib, a 45-year-old mother of four from al-Shujaiya, vowed never to flee again, no matter the cost. Yet, once more, she found herself leaving her home, unsure of where to go.

“If it were up to me, I would stay here and wait for death,” Habib told The New Arab. “But my children beg me in tears […] They don’t want to die. They just want to escape this holocaust.”

Exhaustion and despair weigh heavy on her. “I have no hope left. Wherever we go, death follows. The Israeli army killed so many of our loved ones, destroyed our lives, and robbed us of the will to live,” she remarked. 

Since the Israel’s genocidal war began around 18 months ago, Habib and her family have been displaced at least ten times. “In October 2023, we fled before our home was bombed. We sought refuge with relatives in Gaza City, then in Nuseirat. When they forced us out again, we went to Rafah. When the bombing started there, we moved to Deir al-Balah, shifting from tent to tent, house to house. We endured so much to return to al-Shujaiya. Now they’re expelling us again… But where to?” she said. 

Before the war, her life was simple. She used to send her children to school and work as a seamstress, helping her husband, a carpenter. They had dreams of opening a small workshop. Now, all of their ambitions are gone.

Her middle son, Samer, 10, once dreamed of becoming a doctor. Now, he barely speaks. 

Her eldest, Kinan, is 15 and no longer has a childhood. According to Habib, her eldest son spends days searching for food and water. 

Jumana Obeid, also from al-Shujaiya, refused to flee until a night of relentless bombing changed her mind. “I couldn’t bear the terror in my children’s eyes. They are afraid. So am I. We have no choice,” she told TNA. 

Last night, the Israeli army bombed their neighbour’s house as they slept. “They killed children without hesitation. And they will do it again. But we are exhausted. We can’t take this any longer,” she said. 

Eyewitnesses said that Israeli airstrikes flattened an entire residential block belonging to the Jendeya family. Medical sources in Gaza City reported that at least 20 Palestinians, including women and children, were killed. Civil defence teams have yet to recover the victims.

According to Israeli army orders, residents must move to the western parts of Gaza City to seek shelter in schools, tents, or the homes of relatives. 

However, the situation remains dire, as most areas of the city are already overcrowded with displaced people who have fled from the northern towns of Jabalia, Beit Hanoun, and Beit Lahia. 

“With shelters beyond capacity, many families are forced to sleep in the open, exposed to the cold and rain sometimes,” Mahmoud Basal, the spokesperson of the civil defence, told TNA.

“The shortage of food and clean water has reached critical levels, leaving thousands struggling to secure a single meal daily. Medical supplies are also running out, making it nearly impossible for the sick and injured to receive proper treatment,” he said. 

In the face of these worsening conditions, desperation grows among the displaced.

“We lived in this horror several times. Since Israel resumed the war, there hasn’t been a single moment of safety. Each day, the tragedy deepens,” Mahmoud Abu Eida, 65, told TNA. 

This is why he decided he will not leave his house even if the Israeli army would kill him and his family. 

“We’ve been displaced so many times. We fled south, thinking we would be safe. But the army bombed us there, too. No one had mercy on us, not the world or aid organisations. It was as if we were worthless,” he told TNA. “We came back, realising death is the same, whether here or there. But this time, I will not leave. Let them kill us here. At least I will die in my home, not on the streets.”

A long silence follows, and then he adds, “This war has drained everything from us. I have no strength left to flee again. Either I survive by chance, or I die by chance. But I will not let Israel control my fate again.”

According to the Gaza-based Palestinian health ministry, at least 1,163 people have been killed and more than 2,735 wounded, including women and children, since the ceasefire deal collapsed and Israel launched a renewed onslaught on the enclave on 18 March.