3:26 am ET, May 19, 2024
Displaced woman describes “death and horror” in Gaza refugee camp
From Abdel Qadr al-Sabba in Jabalya
Smoke rises following an Israeli attack on the Jabalya refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip on May 18.
Rami Zohot/Reuters
Reuters
One displaced woman described the dire conditions to CNN Jabalya refugee camp in northern GazaIsrael’s military has bombed the area heavily and engaged in repeated clashes with Palestinian militants there.
“It’s death and horror as you can see. We wake up scared and go to bed scared,” Ibtisam Abu Abid told CNN on Friday.
“Our house is gone. Four floors for me and my children – everything is gone,” he says, referring to his home in the nearby town of Beit Hanoun.
After relocating from the eastern part of the camp, he is now staying in a destroyed shelter in the center of Jabalya. Abu Abid says he has no toilet facilities, adequate shelter, and a shortage of water.
The Israeli army said on Saturday that its forces had killed Palestinian militants in several battles in Jabalya. CNN footage from the area shows large explosions, bombings, gunfire and drones heard throughout.
Soldiers recovering bodies from the rubble: About 300 homes were completely destroyed in seven days during the Israeli invasion of Jabalya, said Mahmoud Bassal, a spokesman for the civil defense emergency services in Gaza.
Basel’s teams have recovered at least 150 bodies and rescued hundreds of injured people in the refugee camp in the past week, he told CNN on Saturday.
He warned that many bodies were buried under the rubble, with civil defense teams unable to reach or dig them out. Despite calls for help from citizens, Bassel said the Israeli fires have made his team of first responders afraid to approach some areas.
CNN’s Sarah El Sirgani reported for this post.
