The Bureij refugee camp in 2018 (Photo: WikipediaCommons)
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to keep up its occupation of Gaza. He rejected Donald Trump’s “15 point plan for Gaza”, saying there would be no military pull-out until Hamas is “genuinely” disarmed.
Trump’s Board of Peace, which is pushing through a colonial carve-up of Gaza, said it had reached an agreement for the “complete disarmament” of Hamas.
The Palestinian national liberation organisation said it would disarm if Israel ended “all forms of aggression” and withdrew its forces from Gaza.
This comes as Israel maintains air strikes on Gaza, violating the ceasefire and murdering Palestinians.
Israeli airstrikes in al-Qarara, near Khan Younis, in Gaza City and elsewhere, have killed more than two dozen Palestinians since the beginning of this month.
Alaa, a Palestinian journalist, is one of many struggling to survive in Gaza City. She told Socialist Worker, “Every day there are more air strikes. People are afraid of walking in any open space because of sudden air attacks.
“My mother pleads with me not to walk along the road unless it is absolutely necessary as people are being targeted in the open.”
Alaa explained that Israel is continuing to block aid from entering Gaza.
“There are lots of restrictions on food. The available food is poor and not nutritious. It’s deliberate starvation,” she said.
“People are living in tents that are falling apart and can’t be replaced because there is no money to buy new ones which are at very high prices.
“The extreme heat is making things more difficult. Mosquito bites are causing skin diseases. We can’t sleep,” she said.
“The water being collected from trucks but still it is polluted. You can’t go near the yellow line for fear of being shot by a sniper. People are very frightened.”
Ibtisam, in Deir al Balah, works at a field hospital and sees the consequences of Israel’s systematic deprivation and destruction every day.
“The population is being starved. No income, no security, no police. People are very worried about theft and feel threatened,” she told Socialist Worker.
“There are massive numbers of rats that bite food, the tent material, adults and children. Adults have to stay awake to protect their children from being bitten while sleeping.
“People are suffering also from gastric and respiratory problems. Scabies is widespread.”
Ibtisam has family in Bureij, a Palestinian refugee camp located in the central Gaza Strip, who are frightened with nowhere to go, as they are so close to the eastern “yellow line”.
“Palestinians have been martyred for even being close to this moveable boundary,” she said.
“Gaza is a prison. The borders are closed. They control us remotely.
“We are looking for solidarity. The human being inside of me needs solidarity and empathy. We are sending our voices to the outside.”
The answer is not to demand that Palestinians disarm while Israel continues its assault. It is to stop arming Israel, end the siege and stand with Palestinians against occupation and genocide.
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