Mohammed Mansour's children sleep poorly due to the sound of explosions and drones. They cry every night, he tells TT.
We can be attacked in an air raid while we sleep, when we go out to buy food. I am worried about their education and there is no room for joy, entertainment or play. My children are, if I am to be honest, traumatized emotionally and psychologically due to the conditions here.
His oldest daughter is eight years old and has not been able to go to school since the war broke out in the autumn of 2023. The younger daughter was born a year and a half ago, during the war.
The family has, just like most other Gazans, been forced to leave their homes as Israel has ordered mass evacuations during the war, which began with the terrorist-stamped Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
Empty Markets
Mohammed Mansour works as a nutrition expert for the aid organization International Rescue Committee. The organization's work has been significantly hampered because aid shipments with several tons of supplies are not being let into Gaza.
Despite the difficult challenges, we have been able to continue providing life-saving assistance with our staff on site and through our support to Palestinian organizations.
Bakeries and soup kitchens have had to close because there are no ingredients to bake and cook with, but it's not just a lack of food in Gaza. There is also a lack of clean water, healthcare, and a roof over one's head. Almost all hospitals have closed and markets stand empty. The food that exists is unaffordable.
Some goods exist, but the price has increased tenfold, you can hardly imagine what a kilo of flour costs, so people in Gaza cannot afford the food that actually exists, says Mohammed Mansour.
"No Safe Places"
Last Sunday, Israel announced that a limited amount of aid shipments can be let in via private security companies. Mohammed Mansour wants to see a ceasefire that holds, so that necessary aid can reach the most vulnerable.
He has sought refuge in a café to get access to electricity in order to answer TT's questions.
Unfortunately, there are no safe places in Gaza. No buildings, no hospitals, no UN buildings, no shelters, not even the tents are safe. The Israeli side has said that this is a humanitarian area, but there are no safe places in Gaza.
