"I can see the plumes of smoke from the bombings through my window," said Rama Abu Amra, 21, speaking by telephone from south of Gaza City. She screamed as the bang of a nearby explosion could be heard.
"The bombs are falling all around us, we can't even tell where they're hitting. I can even smell the gunpowder now," said the university student.
"It's so scary. We don't know what's happening around us. We are so afraid about what will happen next. For two days, we have woken up hearing bombs falling around us without knowing what's happening.
It has come as a total shock, we almost didn't know if it was happening in real life or in a nightmare." Israeli forces hammered the Gaza Strip while battling Hamas militants in southern towns bordering the territory. The airstrikes followed Saturday's unprecedented incursion by Hamas militants, who killed more than 800 Israelis and took at least 100 more hostage.
The Palestinian health ministry said 560 people, including children, had been killed in Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip, with at least 2,900 wounded.
Abu Amra described a sense of widening fear at the news that Israel had ordered what the defence minister Yoav Gallant labelled "a complete siege" of Gaza, including a complete shutdown of electricity and a block on the entry of food and fuel.
Israel's infrastructure minister, Israel Katz, said he had given an order to cut the supply of water to Gaza, a slim strip of land that houses an estimated 2.3 million people, almost half of whom are children. "What was in the past will no longer be in the future," he said.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة October 10, 2023 من The Guardian.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة October 10, 2023 من The Guardian.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
The Filter Cast-iron alternatives to Le Creuset for less
Le Creuset's colourful pans have long topped the wishlists of amateur and professional cooks.
Money hacks How to find a pet-sitter you can trust
Unless you have family, a friend or a neighbour who can care for your pet when you're away, you'll need to find a pet-sitter you can trust.
Pensions An A to Z of how to save for your retirement
Everything you need to know to plan for your future and make the most of your finances. Rupert Jones and Hilary Osborne report
'A fork in the road' AI's bid to help on laundry days at Europe's tech summit
This year's Web Summit in Lisbon was all about artificial intelligence and a robot sorting laundry.
Brexit So how could Labour improve EU ties for the sake of growth?
The Bank of England governor, Andrew Bailey, said this week that Brexit had undermined the UK's economy, and urged the government to improve relations with the EU for the sake of growth.
Aviation Flying taxis: destined never to take off?
In a dreary November day in the Cotswolds, the VX4 - a cross between a plane and a helicopter - rose from an airport runway, hovered a few feet off the ground and set back down.
Property firm back in profit as workers return to offices
One of Britain's biggest property developers has provided further evidence of the return to office working, saying occupancy in its central London offices is at an all-time high and the value of its portfolio has returned to growth.
Analysis Summer of dark warnings from the Treasury may have cast a shadow on growth
It was hardly surprising that the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, declared herself \"not satisfied\" with the news that the UK's GDP expanded by a measly 0.1% in the three months to September.
Contracting GDP adds to German woes as general election looms
Germany's looming general election will be fought against the backdrop of a stagnating economy, the European Commission has forecast, with GDP expected to have contracted in 2024.
UK economy slows amid jitters over Labour budget
The UK economy slowed to a near-standstill in the third quarter as uncertainty around Labour's first budget and high interest rates weighed on business and consumer spending.
