Stuck in Gaza’s limbo: Palestinians struggle to live amid Israel’s attacks

Palestinians in Gaza stuck as they try to plan for peace, even as Israel refuses to end its violence against them.

Gaza City – Near a burned-out car that had been targeted in front of their home, Faiq Ajour stood with other family members cleaning up scattered debris and shattered glass.

Faiq had been on his way to buy a few items from a nearby vegetable stall when the Israeli strike hit on Saturday.

“I survived by a miracle. I had just crossed the street,” he told Al Jazeera. The Palestinian described his shock – and his fear that it was his house that had been hit by the Israeli attack.

That wasn’t the case, and as he ran back towards the scene, he found his family, physically unharmed. But his three young daughters shook with fear, worried that Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza – which was supposed to have been suspended after the introduction of a ceasefire in October – had returned.

Israel has repeatedly attacked Gaza since that ceasefire began, accusing the Palestinian group Hamas of ceasefire violations. Hamas denies that, and Palestinians point out that it is Israel that has used overwhelming force since the ceasefire began, violating it 500 times, and killing more than 342 civilians, including 67 children.