EDITORIAL
“On Eid last year, we played, celebrated and rejoiced together,” recalled Tala Abu Amr, a seven-year-old girl living in a camp for displaced Palestinians in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip.
“But this Eid, we miss the taste of happiness… There are no toys and no friends to play with. They’re all dead.”
Tala was one of a number of children who spoke to BBC Arabic’s Gaza Lifeline radio programme about how they and other members of their families were struggling to celebrate the end of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, as the devastating war between Israel and Hamas continues for a seventh month.
Israel Defense Forces, IDF, have confirmed the killing of three sons of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in a recent airstrike conducted in the Gaza Strip.
IDF claimed that Haniyeh’s three sons — Amir, Hazem and Mohammad — struck while they were “en route to carry out terror activity in the area of central Gaza”.
Ismail Haniyeh lives in exile in Qatar. The Israeli airstrike occurred near the Shati refugee camp in Gaza City, where Haniyeh is originally from.
According to the IDF, Amir Haniyeh was a squad commander in the Hamas military wing, while Hazem and Mohammad Haniyeh were lower-ranking operatives.
The recent strikes in Gaza came amid the low-key celebrations of Eid al-Fitr holiday with scores of Palestinians ending the holy fasting month of Ramadan and visiting the graves of loved ones killed in the war which started on October 7, 2023.
Earlier in the day, US President Joe Biden termed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s handling of the war in Gaza a ‘mistake’ and urged him to provide aid to the beleaguered territory.
Israel and Hamas are engaged in talks meant to bring about a cease-fire in exchange for the release of hostages captured by Hamas and others. According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, over 33,400 Palestinians have been killed in the rigorous fighting, with most of the dead being women and children.
During the past 24 hours, the Israeli army killed 122 Palestinians and wounded 56 others, bringing the total death toll to 33,482 and injuries to 76,049 since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas conflict, the ministry said in a statement.
Some victims are still under the rubble and on the roads as the Israeli army prevents ambulance and civil defense crews from reaching them, according to the statement.
Israel launched a large-scale offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip to retaliate against a Hamas rampage through southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, during which about 1,200 people were killed and more than 200 were taken hostage.
Eid al-Fitr is usually a period of great celebration for Muslims after a month of fasting, with families and friends coming together and sharing large meals. It is also common for children to receive either money or gifts from their elders.
