A ceasefire announced on 10 October has failed to bring peace to Gaza, where more than 360 Palestinians, including 70 children, have been killed since then, according to a first-hand account from a resident. Despite world leaders repeatedly invoking the word 'peace', life under the truce remains a nightmare of fear, destruction and deprivation.
The writer, Aya Al-Hattab, describes being trapped in an 'endless maze of waiting' – for the suffering to stop, for life to begin again, and for the deaths to end. Her family rents a cramped, unsuitable apartment with limited water, no working ATMs, and streets so damaged that movement is dangerous. There is no electricity or reliable internet, and no sense of stability or safety.
Along Gaza's newly created borders, an invisible 'yellow line' marks where homes are demolished daily. Explosions and smoke from artillery and remotely operated explosive robots keep residents in constant terror. Children are reportedly shot if they approach the line. The writer’s relatives near Gaza City keep windows closed due to smoke from attacks, which they fear may involve phosphorus weapons.
Al-Hattab longs for simple realities: a home that won't be destroyed, lovers reunited, dreams fulfilled, nights without fear. She has not seen her fiancé for two years because movement between central and southern Gaza has been too dangerous. He left for Egypt in April 2024 and cannot return; she cannot leave. 'This is the true torment of a Palestinian: waiting for the unknown and trying to hold on to hope. Sometimes it feels worse than death,' she writes.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said this month that the first phase of the ceasefire is near completion, but for Palestinians, none of it has translated into reality. They remain excluded from negotiations about their own future.
