Abu Mohammed stands with red, bleary eyes. Women and young men walk on a muddied pathway as children run between rows of improvised tents in Deir al-Balah displacement camp, central Gaza. <\/p>\n
Mohammed and others staying in makeshift displacement camps have survived Israeli bombardments that have laid waste to Gaza\u2019s streets for over a year, enduring catastrophic violence, constant killings and disfigurement, and crippling hunger. <\/p>\n
As Israel celebrated its killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar this week \u2013 with its allies hoping Sinwar\u2019s death will now open a possibility for peace in Gaza \u2013 Mohammed and many others remain skeptical it will change their daily reality. <\/p>\n
Sinwar was a divisive figure to Palestinians: a militant hardliner, Sinwar was seen as a brutal force by some, a pragmatic political thinker by others, and a freedom fighter to many. <\/p>\n
Born in a refugee camp in 1962, his family displaced from the Palestinian village of Al-Majdal \u2013 in what is now the Israeli city of Ashkelon \u2013 Sinwar was \u201ca symbol of the Palestinian people,\u201d in Mohammed\u2019s view and that of many others. <\/p>\n
Many Gazans today are afraid to publicly voice support for Sinwar and Hamas for fear of being targeted by the Israeli military \u2014 which launched its siege of Gaza with the stated aim of destroying Hamas after it led the October 7 terror attacks, and to save the hostages taken that day. Others fear condemning Hamas, which controls the Palestinian enclave. <\/p>\n
\u201cSinwar was a target for Israel and he was targeted and killed. He attacked Israel, and committed crimes that we have paid the price for \u2026 We paid with horrific tragedies, with the blood of our children, our money, and our homes.\u201d <\/p>\n
She too said she had little hope that his death would be a turning point in the war. \u201cThe assassination of leaders seems to change nothing. (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu wants more and more people to be killed. We wish to live in security, peace, and stability,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n
Sinwar\u2019s death has prompted speculation among Western allies over whether the coming weeks could signal the beginning of the end of fighting in Gaza, and the release of 101 remaining Israeli hostages. <\/p>\n
But Netanyahu has given no signal he is ready to end the war. And Hamas has vowed to continue fighting. <\/p>\n
On Thursday, the Israel Defense Forces released drone footage that it said shows Sinwar in his final moments. The edited video shows the interior of a hollowed-out building, where a man that the IDF identifies as Sinwar can be seen perched alone on an armchair. <\/p>\n
In the footage, the figure\u2019s face is obscured by a scarf and covered in a thick layer of dust. His right arm appears to be injured, as he turns toward the drone. He is holding what the IDF described as a piece of wood, before throwing it toward the lens. <\/p>\n
The footage appeared to show Sinwar at his weakest \u2013 alone and nearing defeat. But that\u2019s not how most Palestinians see it, according to Mustafa Barghouti, a physician and an independent Palestinian politician. <\/p>\n
\u201cThis image will make him look like a hero for most Palestinians,\u201d Barghouti added, explaining that Sinwar\u2019s apparent defiance in his final moments would be perceived by Palestinians as part of a broader historical resistance, even among those who did not agree with the Hamas leader\u2019s tactics. <\/p>\n
Like Sinwar, at least 70% of residents in Gaza are refugees, or descendants of those uprooted by al-Nakba, or \u201cthe catastrophe,\u201d according to Amnesty International, when about 700,000 Palestinians were forcibly expelled from their homes during the creation of Israel in 1948. <\/p>\n
Decades later, those same descendants are grappling with the same reality of being unable to return to their homes in Gaza, with an estimated 69% of buildings in the enclave now destroyed or partly damaged, according to the CUNY Institute. <\/p>\n
For Abu Fares, one of hundreds of thousands prevented from returning to their homes, Sinwar\u2019s death is just a continuation of a brutal war. \u201cIt will not stop the battle or the fighting, because the children who carried their father\u2019s dismembered body and those who carried their sister\u2019s dismembered body \u2014 what do you expect from them after 20 years?\u201d <\/p>\n
Sinwar\u2019s killing comes as the humanitarian crisis in Gaza spirals and the death toll from Israeli airstrikes continues to rise. <\/p>\n
At least 42,500 people have been killed since October 8, 2023, with another 99,546 injured, according to the Ministry of Health in Gaza. At least 1.9 million of Gaza\u2019s 2.2 million people have been displaced, according to the UN. <\/p>\n
Entire families have been erased, with many neighborhoods reduced to wastelands of thick sewage pools. More than a million people in northern Gaza are facing a looming famine compounded by Israel\u2019s aid restrictions, the UN warned earlier this year. <\/p>\n
Around 70% of Palestinians killed by Israel\u2019s strikes are women and children, according to the Hamas-run Government Media Office (GMO). More than 17,000 children have been killed in the Israeli attacks since October 8, the office said. <\/p>\n
Israel has said that its sustained military campaign in Gaza is designed to root out what remains of Hamas, following the Hamas-led attacks that killed 1,200 people in Israel and saw more than 250 people abducted, according to Israeli authorities. <\/p>\n
Israel says it takes steps to minimize civilian harm, like making phone calls and sending text messages to residents in buildings designated for attack. For years, it has also said Hamas fighters use mosques, hospitals and other civilian buildings to hide from Israeli attacks and launch their own \u2013 claims that Hamas has repeatedly denied. <\/p>\n
But human rights agencies and many world leaders, including Israel\u2019s allies, have repeatedly raised concerns over Israel\u2019s war conduct and the civilian toll. Groups like Amnesty International also say warnings do not absolve Israel of responsibilities under international humanitarian law to limit civilian harm. <\/p>\n
Mahmoud Jneid, also displaced in Deir al-Balah, said the world\u2019s focus should rest on civilian suffering \u2013 not Sinwar\u2019s death. \u201cSinwar was a target. What about us, the displaced? The closure of crossings and the lack of food and drink for children make our situation worse than (his) assassination,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
\u201cI wish Israel would assassinate me too,\u201d Jneid said. \u201cMy brothers and family have died, and I wish for my own death so that I can find peace.\u201d <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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Abu Mohammed stands with red, bleary eyes. Women and young men walk on a muddied pathway as children run between rows of improvised tents in Deir al-Balah displacement camp, central Gaza. Mohammed and others staying in makeshift displacement camps have survived Israeli bombardments that have laid waste to Gaza\u2019s streets for over a year, enduring <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8876,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-8875","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8875","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8875"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8875\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8876"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8875"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8875"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/digitaltradecenter.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8875"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}