Khan Yunis, Gaza Strip — When explosions echo through the night, Umm Ahmed’s children cling to her, asking the same question over and over: where can they run to for safety? Living in a shattered community near Khan Yunis, she has no answer.
Recent Israeli drone and artillery strikes in eastern neighbourhoods of southern Gaza have shattered the fragile calm that followed a ceasefire largely observed since October 10. Residents say the attacks are concentrated east of the so-called Yellow Line — a demarcation established under the truce between Israel and Hamas.
The Israeli military says its forces are operating within the ceasefire framework, accusing Hamas militants of crossing the Yellow Line to carry out attacks. Locals, however, say the renewed bombardment has reignited fear and uncertainty in areas already devastated by more than two years of war.
More than two years after Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel triggered a full-scale conflict, tens of thousands of Palestinians remain in tents or damaged homes near Israeli-controlled zones and checkpoints.
Umm Ahmed, 40, lives in Bani Suheila, east of Khan Yunis. Her home was completely destroyed, yet her family has remained, pitching a tent beside the ruins.
“We don’t sleep at night because of fear,” she said. “My children tremble at every explosion and ask, ‘Where can we go?’ And I have no answer.”
Crossing west of the Yellow Line to Al-Mawasi is not an option, she explained. The coastal area is overcrowded with makeshift camps housing tens of thousands of displaced people, where food, water and shelter are in short supply amid what aid groups describe as a catastrophic humanitarian crisis.
The Israeli military maintains that continued operations are necessary. In a statement to AFP, it said its deployment near the Yellow Line is aimed at addressing “direct threats from terrorist organisations in Gaza.”
The war began with Hamas’s October 7 attack, which killed 1,221 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to Israeli figures compiled by AFP. Since then, Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry says more than 70,000 people have been killed in the territory, and most of its more than two million residents have been displaced, many repeatedly.
Although a ceasefire has been in place since October 10, both sides frequently accuse each other of violations. Under the agreement, Israeli forces were to withdraw east of the Yellow Line. Earlier this month, Israeli army chief Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir described the line as a “new border line” and a forward defensive position.
Palestinian officials see it differently.
“The objective is to frighten residents, expel them from their areas, and force them west,” said Khan Yunis mayor Alaa al-Batta, calling the bombardments clear violations of the ceasefire.
Mahmud Baraka, 45, from Khuzaa east of Khan Yunis, said artillery fire and home demolitions continue unabated.
“It feels like we are still living in a war zone,” he said. “The goal is to intimidate us and empty the area.”
Despite the danger, some residents refuse to leave. Abdel Hamid, 70, who lives north of Khan Yunis with his five children, remains defiant.
“We will not leave. This is our land,” he said. “Moving would not be a solution, but another tragedy.”
For families across southern Gaza, the choice remains painfully stark: endure bombardment where they are, or face an uncertain future in overcrowded camps — with no guarantee of safety on either side.
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