KHAN YUNIS: When her children, trembling with fear, ask where the family can go to escape Israel’s continued bombardment in southern Gaza’s Khan Yunis area, Umm Ahmed has no answer.
In her small, devastated village near Khan Yunis city, recent Israeli drone and artillery strikes shattered the tenuous sense of peace delivered by a ceasefire that has largely held since October 10.
Residents say the strikes have targeted neighbourhoods east of the so-called Yellow Line — a demarcation established under the truce between Israel and Hamas.
The Israeli military says its troops are deployed in the area in accordance with the ceasefire framework, accusing Hamas of “crossing the Yellow Line and carrying out terrorist activities”.
More than two years after Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel sparked a devastating war, tens of thousands of Gazans still live in tents or damaged homes in these areas, where the Israeli army maintains control and operates checkpoints.
Now, many fear being forced from their homes, compelled to move west of the Yellow Line.
“We don’t sleep at night because of fear. The bombardments in the east are relentless,” said Umm Ahmed, 40.
“My children tremble at every explosion and ask me, ‘Where can we go?’ And I have no answer.”
Her home in Bani Suheila has been completely destroyed, yet the family has stayed, pitching a tent beside the ruins.
“Staying close to our destroyed home is easier than facing the unknown,” Umm Ahmed said.
Crossing the Yellow Line to Al-Mawasi, west of Khan Yunis, is not an option for them.
There, makeshift camps stretch as far as the eye can see, housing tens of thousands of Palestinians who fled the fighting.
“There is no place left for anyone there, and not enough food or water,” Umm Ahmed said, as Gaza remains trapped in a catastrophic humanitarian crisis.
The Israeli military blames continued threats from Hamas for its actions in the area.