A trembling hand appears from piles of rubble as a woman frantically seeks help. Stuck under a collapsed building in Gaza, her tragedy is similar to that of hundreds of Gazans who have died over the past week.
She keeps her hand moving in a desperate attempt to be spotted and rescued. But with no ambulances and emergency personnel in most neighbourhoods in Gaza, rescue operations have become a tricky job.
People are attempting to rescue survivors from under the rubble with their own hands. Literally. No ambulances. No firefighters. No equipment. This woman kept moving her hand so someone would spot her. This is happening across Gaza. pic.twitter.com/SF9exhEd6A
— Nour Odeh ???????? #NojusticeNopeace (@nour_odeh) October 12, 2023
In such cases, it’s up to the civilians who have no electric cutters or special equipment to retrieve survivors from the rubble.
Israel began airstrikes on suspected Hamas hideouts on Saturday after the Palestinian group launched rocket attacks at them and targeted civilians near border areas.
The situation is expected worsen with Israeli military ordering a million Gazans to evacuate the city and move southwards. They said Hamas operatives are hiding in tunnels under the Gaza city and warned that they will “operate significantly” in the city in the coming days.
The United Nations too has moved its operations to south Gaza after warning of “devastating humanitarian consequences” if such a large-scale movement had to take place.
Gaza shares boundary with Egypt in the south and with Israel in the north and east.