GAZA, (PIC)
Since the early hours of the morning, the beach of the Gaza Sea begins to receive thousands of citizens who found in it the only refuge from the scorching summer heat, after the displacement tents turned into unbearable places with rising temperatures, the continuous power outage, and the scarcity of water.
On the extended sands, the sounds of waves mix with the laughter of children, while the sounds of warplanes and explosions do not disappear in the background.
A scene that summarizes an exceptional Gazan reality; children trying to steal moments of joy, and mothers watching the sky more than watching their children.
A place to breathe
Abu Ahmad Al-Dahdouh sat under a worn-out umbrella he made from a piece of cloth, watching his children playing in the water.
He told the PIC reporter, “The tent is (like) fire, especially at noon time. The children cannot sit inside it, so we come to the sea whenever we can. Here at least there is air that relieves them.”
He added while looking at the horizon, “We are not looking for a picnic, we are looking for a place where we can breathe.”
Not far from him, Um Muhammad Abu Auda was spreading a small blanket on the sand, while her children run between the waves.
She said, “For months my children have not known the meaning of normal life. No schools, no parks, and no places to play. The sea has become everything to them, even if we stay in it for a few hours.”
She continued, “Whenever we hear the sound of an explosion we hug our children to us, but we go back and let them play. We do not want them to grow up knowing nothing but fear.”
On the other side of the beach, the child Abd al-Rahman Al-Masri (ten years old) was building a sandcastle with his little sister.
Playing in the stirrups of fear
He said with a smile that hides a lot of fatigue, “I love the sea because it is cold, and in the tent I cannot sleep from the heat.”
But his smile quickly disappears with the sound of a nearby explosion, so he turns towards his mother before returning to continue playing, as if the children of Gaza have become accustomed to fear sharing the details of their day with them.
The sea is no longer just a place for swimming, rather it has transformed into a space where the displaced gather to exchange news, search for a little rest, and restore something of the life that the war robbed.
The fisherman Abu Yusuf Al-Haddad confirmed that the beach witnesses daily large numbers of families.
He said, “All the people come here fleeing from the tents. No one thinks of entertainment, everyone is looking for a breath of air and for a place that relieves the children.”
With the onset of evening, the families begin gathering their belongings and returning to the tents, realizing that the hours of rest have ended, and that the reality of displacement still awaits them.
In Gaza, the sea is no longer a title for the summer vacation as it was in the past, rather it has become the last outlet for a city exhausted by war, and a small window through which thousands of displaced people try to resist the heat and fear, and cling to what remains of the details of life.