After eight months of brutal war, Muslims in Gaza on Sunday will mark the somber Eid al-Adha, a major religious holiday often celebrated by sharing meat among friends, family and loved ones. poor people.
Adha means sacrifice, and the ritual slaughter of sheep, goats or cows on this day is considered a symbol of the prophet Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son. But this year, Nearly everyone in Gaza is in need of help. Famine has gripped Palestinian territory as Israel launched an eight-month military offensive into the enclave and severely limited what was allowed in, including humanitarian aid.
Many people don’t feel like celebrating.
“There will not be any Eid nor any Eid atmosphere,” said Zaina Kamuni, who lives with her family in a tent on a sandy expanse in southern Gaza called Al-Mawasi. “I haven’t eaten meat in five months.”
“It will be a day like any other, like Eid al-Fitr,” she added, referring to the other major Muslim holiday, that the people of Gaza observed more than two months ago under the same conditions.
Since the war began on October 7 following a Hamas-led attack on Israel that Israel estimates killed 1,200 people, Gazans have endured frequent intense bombardment and deprivation. . According to Gaza health authorities, more than 37,000 people have died and hunger is widespread.
UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, said: “With continued restrictions on humanitarian access, people in #Gaza continue to face desperate levels of hunger ”. post on social networks on Saturday, adding that more than 50,000 children needed treatment for acute malnutrition.
On Sunday, the Israeli military announced a pause in daily military operations near the southern Gaza border crossing to allow more aid to enter the territory, although it was unclear whether more supplies would be forthcoming. . The United Nations World Food Program warned this week that southern Gaza could soon witness the catastrophic levels of famine experienced by Gazans in the north of the territory.
Many Gazans have raised hope with information about negotiations and a proposed ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas. But each passing holiday – including Christmas and Easter for Gaza’s small Christian community – is a reminder of how entrenched this war has become.
Over the years, Adnan Abdul Aziz, 53, who lives in Deir al Balah, central Gaza, has been able to buy a sheep and slaughter it on Eid. On the morning of Eid, he and his family will eat lamb liver for breakfast and for lunch will make a traditional Palestinian dish with meat. They will give the rest to family, friends and people in need.
Now, because of electricity shortages and rising market costs, Mr. Abdul Aziz has to buy food every day, depending on what is available and what he can afford. But the party isn’t the only thing he’ll miss this year, he said.
“There are family visits and gatherings, giving money to the children, buying new clothes for everyone, making sweets, Eid prayers,” he said. “None of this is possible this year. Everyone is sad and has lost someone or something.”
Aya Ali Adwan, 26, was engaged before the war started. Her wedding, scheduled for February, was postponed, another celebration disrupted by the conflict.
Originally from northern Gaza, she and her family were forced to flee eight times during the war. They are now sheltering in a cramped tent in Deir al Balah, where temperatures have reached 95 degrees Fahrenheit, making the tent unbearably hot.
“My spirit was broken,” she said. “We should be busy with Eid preparations, like baking cookies and regular tasks like cleaning the house and buying clothes, like any Palestinian family before Eid. But this year there is nothing.”
Many relatives who visited their home during Eid were killed in the war, she said.
“Right now, the only thing we need is to feel safe, even though we lack everything,” she said. “The only thing we need is for the war to end and for us to return to our homes.”
Ameera Harouda And Songal Shbair Report contributions.
