A night of bombardment fell upon the Gaza Strip as Israeli fighter jets carried out assaults on several locations there.
The City of Gaza, Gaza – Samar Alwan hurried to her two-year-old daughter’s bed to grab her after the first Israeli bombardment landed close to the Al Dorra children’s hospital in the besieged Gaza Strip at midnight on Thursday.
A little while later, the window’s glass broke and fell into the crib from the window above the bed.
The 23-year-old Alwan, who has been in the hospital for two days with her feverish kid, told Al Jazeera that “my daughter miraculously survived.”
“We were sleeping on the ward last night. We were startled out of sleep by the terrible sound of air strikes.
“The glass was falling, and I experienced intense fear in those seconds. I hastened to get my youngster out of bed right away. Later, the window crashed down over her bed. I was on the verge of losing her.
In the Al Dorra Hospital with her two-year-old daughter, Samar Alwan [Abdelhakim Abu Riash/Al Jazeera]
The hospital in the eastern Gaza Strip suffered some damage early on Friday as Israeli planes bombed nearby open area.
The attacks caused significant damage to the neighbouring homes and structures. Israel claimed to have destroyed weapons manufacturing facilities and underground tunnels connected to the Hamas organisation, which governs the region.
Alwan claimed that a tragedy at the hospital might have resulted from the shelling.
Because of the bombing’s ferocity, she continued, “all the sick children were afraid and screaming, and a condition of stress prevailed among all the moms and the medical staff.”
“The windows’ glass was falling and breaking. Once the sick children had been brought up, some windows suddenly collapsed into their beds. This might have resulted in a tragedy and numerous injuries.
Youngsters watch as bombs fall on abandoned fields in Gaza’s east [Abdelhakim Abu Riash/Al Jazeera]
The Gaza Ministry of Health (MOH) condemned the Israeli airstrikes, saying they “horrified the youngsters and partially damaged the hospital in Gaza City.”
The ministry issued a statement saying, “It is intolerable that health facilities have once again been targeted.”
“These attacks not only endanger the lives of patients, but they also instil terror among medical staff, patients, and their relatives.”
The MOH pleaded with the international community to act to stop these assaults on medical facilities and to take steps to safeguard the facilities and workers in the beleaguered Gaza Strip.
After the blast, according to Alwan, her daughter’s condition deteriorated and her fever rose.
“Many of the kids in this place shook all night long. Because of their poverty, our children in Gaza cannot celebrate any holidays, including Ramadan or Eid. They are constantly threatened by terror and disaster that could strike at any time.
Similar to an earthquake
During the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, Majdi Abu Nima and his family awoke at 3 am (1:00 GMT) to prepare for suhoor in their home in Gaza City’s Al Tuffah neighbourhood.
Israeli aeroplanes attacked nearby vacant land out of the blue, severely damaging their home and terrifying the family members.
According to Abu Nima, a father of seven, “it was like an earthquake.” “We were frightened. I hurried to my three girls’ bedroom right away and discovered my two-year-old daughter was covered in broken window glass.
Majdi Abu Nima is pictured standing in his daughter’s bedroom, which was damaged by last night’s attack in the Gaza neighbourhood.
“I will never forget her astonishment, terror, or heartbeat. The entire household was shouting.
I haven’t realised it yet, but they blasted our neighbourhood. How could a barren area be bombed without reason? There are no military installations or resistance fighters in this area; it is only a vacant plot of ground between houses.
The 44-year-old described to Al Jazeera the challenges he had to overcome in order to attempt to purchase the home.
“I only moved into this house a little over a year ago, and the payments are mounting. We brought a set of sofas just two days ago to get ready for Eid. Therefore, there is no longer any festivity or enthusiasm during Eid.
Majdi and his son checking their furniture that was affected by last night’s bombing [Abdelhakim Abu Riash/Al Jazeera]
Losing his vehicle
The family’s 26-year-old eldest son, Mohannad Abu Nima, told Al Jazeera that he hurried downstairs to check on his car when he heard the first attack.
The second, third, fourth, and fifth strikes began as soon as I climbed the stairs. The atmosphere was shaken. Dust was all over it.
As I heard my parents sobbing and calling my name, I thought I had perished in the bombing. However, when they heard my voice telling them that I was okay, I realised otherwise.
Mohannad was saddened by the loss of his car, which he had just purchased six months prior, despite the fact that no one in the family was hurt.
Checking what’s left of his automobile is Mohannad Abu Nima [Abdelhakim Abu Riash/Al Jazeera]
“After working day and night to pay for it, I invested all of my savings in it. Standing next to his wrecked car, Mohannad remarked, “That was my only source of income.
“The situation in the Gaza Strip is intolerably bad. Whatever was remained was destroyed by the bombs that came. This place has turned into a true hell.”
The Gaza Strip experienced a protracted escalation on Thursday night, during which Israeli fighter jets carried out air assaults on a number of locations, including agricultural and uninhabited fields, and Palestinian armed organisations fired rockets into Israel.
Israeli police’s Tuesday attack on worshippers at Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque sparked the most recent round of escalation in Gaza and was widely denounced by the Arab and international communities.
The damage caused by the Israeli attack last night is being examined by locals [Abdelhakim Abu Riash/Al Jazeera].
