GAZA: In tents amid stifling heat and in bombed-out mosques, Gazans observed Sunday the beginning of Eid al-Adha, overshadowed by ongoing Israeli bombardments that have drained the usual festive spirit from the holiday, AFP reported.
“There is no joy. We have been robbed of it,” lamented Malakiya Salman, a 57-year-old Palestinian woman displaced from her home, now residing in a tent in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip.
Eid al-Adha, which translates to “feast of the sacrifice,” is traditionally marked by Muslims worldwide through the slaughter of animals and the distribution of meat to the needy. It is also a time for parents to gift children with new clothes and money. However, after more than eight months of relentless Israeli military bombardments that have devastated much of Gaza, displaced millions of Palestinian civilians, and triggered dire famine, this year’s Eid is marked by sorrow and despair for Palestinians in Gaza.
“I hope the world will put pressure to end the Israeli bombardments on us because we are truly dying, and our children are broken,” Salman added, speaking from her tent, having been displaced from the southern city of Rafah—a recent target of Israeli airstrikes.
On Sunday morning, the Israeli military announced a “tactical pause of military activity” around a route in Rafah to allow for the delivery of essential humanitarian aid to Gaza. However, Israeli officials stressed that there was “no cessation of hostilities in the southern Gaza Strip.”
In Gaza City, many gathered for the Eid morning prayer in the courtyard of the historic Omari Mosque, heavily damaged by Israeli bombardment. Worshippers placed their worn prayer mats amidst the rubble, their prayers echoing through the city’s deserted and ravaged streets.
The streets of Gaza City saw young boys attempting to sell perfumes, lotions, and other goods against the backdrop of destroyed buildings. Vendors shielded themselves from the scorching sun with umbrellas, but there were few customers.
For many in Gaza, a temporary halt in Israeli attacks offers little solace for the profound losses endured. Since October 7 last year, Israeli bombardments have killed at least 37,296 Palestinians in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to Gaza’s health ministry.
“We’ve lost many people, there’s a lot of destruction,” said Umm Muhammad al-Katri from Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza. “This Eid is completely different,” she added, noting that many families are spending the holiday without loved ones who have been killed or displaced.
On Sunday, grieving families flocked to cemeteries and makeshift burial sites where simple wooden planks marked the graves. “I feel comfort here,” said Khalil Diab Essbiah at the cemetery where his two children are buried. Despite the constant hum of Israeli drones, visitors at the cemetery “can feel relieved of the genocide we are in and the death and destruction,” he said.
Hanaa Abu Jazar, an 11-year-old girl displaced from Rafah to the tent city in Khan Younis, voiced her sorrow: “We see the (Israeli) occupation killing children, women, and the elderly. How can we celebrate?” she asked, encapsulating the grief and hopelessness felt by many Gazans this Eid.
