GAZA CITY — For the residents of Gaza, the month of Ramadan has begun in a state of latent fear as negotiations stall for a permanent ceasefire between Hamas and Israel. The failure to move on to the second phase of the agreement in place since late 2024 is a result of new demands presented by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Anxiety has quickly spread among people who have been living in dire humanitarian conditions since the beginning of the war 17 months ago.
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The first phase of the agreement stipulated a halt to military operations between Hamas and Israel, the withdrawal of Israeli armed forces to areas far from residential communities, with a commitment to withdrawing to an area adjacent to the border across Gaza Strip, including Wadi Gaza, and retreating to a distance of 700 meters before the border, based on pre-October 7, 2023 maps. The release of prisoners and hostages from both sides was also agreed.
The implementation of these provisions was not smooth, as Israel continued to obstruct the entry of aid and imposed additional restrictions.
Fragile truce fails
After the first phase ended, Netanyahu hastened to stop the entry of goods and international aid into Gaza on the morning of the second day of the first phase, which ended on March 1. This led to a significant rise in prices in Gaza’s markets and the disappearance of many essential goods, further burdening citizens who are living in deteriorating economic conditions.
Daily life is a constant challenge.
Israel did not stop at preventing food from entering, but also launched airstrikes on civilians, leading to the killing of 116 Palestinians and the injury of more than 490 others throughout the first phase. The last of them were four people killed as a result of Israeli bombing in different areas of Gaza, on the day following the end of the first phase. These developments made Palestinians lose hope in the continuation of the truce, and their fears of a resuming war have continued to grow.
According to the official Israeli Broadcasting Authority, Netanyahu does not want to move forward with the second phase of the Gaza agreement, with the possibility of resuming fighting for a short period to pressure Hamas into releasing more hostages. This reflects a desire to obtain political gains at the expense of human suffering, further complicating the situation.
Israeli escalation and rising prices
The Israeli escalation against Gaza was accompanied by a dramatic rise in the prices of available food items in the markets, with the disappearance of many basic goods, especially flour and oil. Meanwhile, major traders took control of the market, worsening the economic crisis and increasing the suffering of residents living under a suffocating siege.
The rising prices and the disappearance of some goods have quickly brought Gazans back to the days of war, during which they suffered famine, raising fears that those days could return — even if Israel stopped killing them. As the situation remains complicated, securing basic necessities for families is becoming increasingly difficult, making daily life a constant challenge.
In the markets, frozen meat, poultry, and fish have run out, and some types of fruit have disappeared. Meanwhile, canned goods and a small amount of rice and vegetables have returned to the shelves of stores that have reopened, but at high prices that not everyone can afford.
Meanwhile, Arab leaders held a summit in Cairo to discuss the reconstruction of Gaza and called on the UN Security Council to deploy peacekeeping forces to protect the Palestinian people. An independent committee of technocrats was also created to manage Gaza’s affairs during a transitional period of six months under the Palestinian government’s umbrella.
But Gazans, like Mahmoud Dardouna, weren’t interested in the Cairo summit.
Searching for a tent
In Jabalia Camp, north of Gaza, which was nearly completely destroyed by Israeli attacks during the war, Dardouna was busy searching for a tent, checking with several international organizations that were still distributing them to those whose homes had been demolished.
A father of six, Dardouna paid no attention to the Arab leaders’ statements. His only concern was whether the war would return, bringing with it displacement, killing, and famine, or if an agreement would be reached to ensure a more stable life for him and his family.
On the fourth day of Ramadan, Dardouna could not find food to break his family’s fast due to the depletion of frozen goods and meat from the markets. He had to rely on some canned food he had received from the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).
This reality is shared by many families in Gaza, who have become entirely dependent on humanitarian aid to survive.
Dardouna and his family have been forced to live in front of the rubble of their destroyed house. He could look in and see the furniture that had been part of his life for years shattered under the debris, with no equipment available to clear the destruction.
Gazans remain in a constant state of waiting, oscillating between hope and despair.
Like hundreds of thousands of residents in Gaza, this father does not know what awaits him in the coming days. The negotiations remain unclear and so uncertainty reigns: will the second phase of the truce begin? Will an all-out war break out again? Will Arab forces manage to guarantee security? When will reconstruction begin?
Nobody has answers to these questions, leaving Gazans in a constant state of waiting between hope and despair, expecting more suffering or the glimmer of a new dawn that can bring some hope for relief.
