‘We will be betrayed’: cold, fearful and still under fire, Gaza’s people wait
Share:
Palestinians describe grief and anxiety as they seek news that the ceasefire is going ahead, and airstrikes continue. Amid continuing airstrikes, bitter cold and news of delays, millions in Gaza were waiting anxiously on Thursday for confirmation that the ceasefire-for-hostages deal between Hamas and Israel was going ahead.
![[A crowd of people with buckets, cans and pans.]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/16161e64eee49a0dba3858aac7b08ea52c2d2fce/0_244_4985_2991/master/4985.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
Many spoke of their fear that hopes of a new beginning after a 15-month conflict might be dashed. The war has killed many tens of thousands in the territory and reduced swathes of it to ruins. “So far, the news is tense about the deal … so we follow the news 24 hours a day. The deal’s failure is possible, because the Israelis do not want Gaza and its people to rest and breathe,” said Muhammad al-Hebbil, 37, who was displaced early in the war from his home in the northern town of Beit Lahiya to Gaza City.
![[Rows of collapsed buildings.]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/2d6cc93ab887a29818e19146fbf3c63296377c0f/0_138_5365_3219/master/5365.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
The agreement announced by Qatar on Wednesday followed months of fruitless negotiations and, if finalised, would pause hostilities one day before the inauguration of the US president-elect, Donald Trump, on Monday. Reports that Israel had accused Hamas of reneging on parts of the deal, and that the Israeli cabinet had not yet met to ratify the agreement increased concerns on Thursday.
“Now everyone wishes to go to sleep and wake up on Sunday, when the fighting has stopped. The waiting is very difficult,” Hebbil said. Palestinians in Gaza reported heavy Israeli bombardment. In previous conflicts in the territory, both sides have stepped up military operations in the final hours before ceasefires as a way to project strength and inflict last minute losses on their enemy.
