Next, the small apartment, with 11 people & multiple kids, typically needs a daily cleaning. They don't have cleaning supplies & can barely find any in stores. They ask to borrow a mop from the neighbours but it's not always available because it's shared between several homes. 6/
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I asked my cousin to tell me how they spend their days during the genocide. Here's what she said:
At 4 am, her brother, 19, gets up to join the line for drinking water. They get 1 gallon of water/ day/ household. They have 11 people in theirs. This line takes several hours. 1/
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Next, her brother joins a second long line. This time for regular use water (salted). This is used for washing, bathing, dishes & everything else.
At dawn, the rest of the family gets up. They pray Fajr (the dawn prayer), read Quran & make Duaa (supplications) together. 2/
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Next, they divide the household tasks.
The most important task is baking bread. There is virtually no bread in stores so they have to make their own on a makeshift woodburning oven. They have several kids in the home, so having bread to keep them fed is essential. 3/
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At night, the roof of their humble apartment typically leaks. The apartment is in awful shape, but it's the only one they could find in Rafah, where they have been displaced for the 5th time in the last 3 months. By morning, most of their blankets & clothes are soaked. 4/
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So part of their daily routine is air drying all the blankets & linens outside on a clothes line or over the fence.
They also have to hand wash all their clothes. They each only have a couple of changes of clothes because they had to evacuate their home in Gaza City quickly. 5/
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Next, someone is in charge of scavenging for groceries. In their area, essentials like eggs are extremely overpriced so they have to walk several kilometers to find slightly more affordable groceries. Groceries typically consist of canned goods & non-perishables. 7/
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At a central point in their area, an aid organization collects names and numbers of each household in a promise to supply them with kits and essentials. They signed up for several days... but received nothing. They stopped bothering. 8/
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Back at home, they start making a shared meal. This is typically a humble meal using their canned goods and whatever they could get their hands on with the overinflated grocery prices. Fresh vegetables & meat are a rare luxury. Meals typically consist of carbs & legumes. 9/
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At sunset, problems start. People are tired, scared & hungry. Some were unable to secure their daily essentials & supplies. They stand in their balcony & hear arguments & fights from neighbours who are desperate to survive. My cousin says this is so demoralizing, sad & scary. 10/
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But sunset isn't nearly as bad as night. This is when the Israeli military regime intensifies its airstrikes. Even in the so-called safe zones, F16 missiles can be heard a short distance away, echoing through the walls. And the overhead buzzing of drones keeps them up. 11/
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By morning, the extent of the devastation becomes apparent. News circulates about the death toll of the previous night. The families still trapped under the rubble. The hospitals that are overflowing with the injured. And the location of the janaza (funeral) prayers. 12/
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And for 94 days, this has been my cousin's life. Violently thrown out of her peaceful, equipped home in Gaza City...& forced into a life of struggle, fear & devastation. She tells me that everyday, they wonder if the nightmare will ever end...or if their turn will be next. 13/13
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