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BBC OS Conversations: Leaving Gaza

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Leaving Gaza

02/02/2024 GMT

BBC World Service - BBC OS Conversations, Leaving Gaza

Life in a Gaza hospital and the guilt of leaving loved-ones behind

Life in a Gaza hospital and the guilt of leaving loved-ones behind.

The BBC revealed this week that more than half the buildings in the Gaza Strip have been damaged or destroyed since Israel launched its retaliation for the Hamas attacks in October. The war has left tens of thousands dead or injured and an estimated 1.7 million people have been displaced. There are shortages of water, food, and medicines.

This week, three US doctors who recently left Gaza share their experiences of working in a hospital in the territory with host James Reynolds. “Blast waves hit the operating room, you can see your metal table with all the instruments rattle, doors slam, the plaster falling off the walls,” Dr Chandra Hassan, from international humanitarian NGO MedGlobal tells us. “You learn to live with that, and you sleep out of exhaustion.”

The escalation of the military activities left many people with no choice but to flee their homes. 35-year-old Layan and her two daughters, 12-year-old Sama and Elya, who’s 8, had to take a long – and at times dangerous – journey from Gaza City to Khan Younis in the south. They have since managed to cross the border into Egypt, where they are now living safely in Cairo. They share their experiences of leaving the Gaza Strip, and Layan tells us why she feels guilty leaving the rest of her family behind.

A Boffin Media production in partnership with the BBC OS team.

(Photo: Layan with her husband and daughters in Gaza. Credit: Layan)

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