A 34-year-old father of three from Beit Hanoun, recounted in a testimony he gave B’Tselem field researcher Muhammad Sabah on 14 November 2023 how he and his family were forced to flee their home:  Before the war, I lived in Beit Hanoun with my wife and our children: Mustafa (7), Elias (5) and Shaker (11 months). We lived in a building together with my four brothers. When the war started, we were all afraid of the bombings and decided to leave. There were 32 of us in total, mostly children. My nuclear family and I went to relatives of my wife’s in Jabalya Refugee Camp, but the next day, we decided to move again because there were constant bombings nearby.  We went to the a-Saftawi neighborhood west of Jabalya and stayed in a storage space that belongs to some relatives. But there was a bombing there, too. The sound was terrifying and very loud, and both we and the children were petrified. So the next day, 10 October 2023, we moved again, this time to an empty apartment belonging to relatives of mine in the neighborhood of al-Juneinah in Rafah. There were other families in the building, from the al-‘Aidy and Zein extended families. In our apartment there were about 20 of us – my family along with my brothers and their wives and children.  The situation in the apartment was better, even though there was no power and almost no water there either, and we could still hear the bombings. We decided to stay put because we had no choice. We had nowhere else to go.  On Monday, 23 October, at around 1:00 P.M., I went to get my hair cut and buy some things with my cousins Khaled al-‘Aidy (31), Ibrahim Abu Sala’h (26) and Ahmad Abu Sala’h (22). We went about 500 meters from the house. Meanwhile, my wife went out with my mother-in-law Zeinab (61), and my kids went to the neighbors, who are relatives of ours from the al-Kurd family. We reached the barbershop, and while we were sitting there, we heard a loud explosion. The whole place shook.  I immediately called my brother-in-law Ahmad, who’d gone to buy a portable charger, and he said the strike was very close, but he didn't know exactly where because everything was full of dust and smoke. A few minutes later, we realized the building we were sheltering in was the one bombed. We ran there and found it almost completely destroyed. I was in shock. The sight was horrifying. There were a lot of people there. We tried to move the rubble to look for people buried underneath. We took the people who weren’t injured to Rabe’ah al-‘Adawiyah School, west of Rafah.  We continued looking for injured and dead people. I lost my brother Mazen (44) and his children: ‘Azzah (20), Khaled (17), Mai (16), Muhammad (15), and Rahaf (8). I also lost my brother Ousamah (38), his wife Sumoud (29) and their children: Sharaf (9), Dana (6) and Alin (3).  My family and I moved to the school and stayed there for 10 days. It was very crowded, so we moved to another school, also in Rafah, which opened five days earlier and we thought would be less crowded. But when we got there, it was full, and we only found a small room. We put the seven women and 10 children from the family there. The young men and I stayed in the yard, out in the open. The conditions were tough. There was a mattress for every two people, and the children slept with their mothers.  Our situation is unbearable. It started raining today, and the nights are very cold. There is no food or water here, and we stand in line for everything. We get a jug of water that’s supposed to be enough for drinking, washing, dishwashing and laundry. I haven't showered or changed my clothes in more than 15 days. I don't have any clothes other than the ones I'm wearing. I lost all my clothes, and so did my wife and children. I also lost two mobile phones.  We’re surviving, but it feels soulless. We only hope this destructive war will end soon so we can go back to our homes and our lives, even though we don't even know if our homes are still there.  Read the testimony of Muhammad Nabil al-'Aidy Read the testimony of Mahmoud Nafez al-'Aidy, including a list of the people killed

A 34-year-old father of three from Beit Hanoun, recounted in a testimony he gave B’Tselem field researcher Muhammad Sabah on 14 November 2023 how he and his family were forced to flee their home:  Before the war, I lived in Beit Hanoun with my wife and our children: Mustafa (7), Elias (5) and Shaker (11 months). We lived in a building together with my four brothers. When the war started, we were all afraid of the bombings and decided to leave. There were 32 of us in total, mostly children. My nuclear family and I went to relatives of my wife’s in Jabalya Refugee Camp, but the next day, we decided to move again because there were constant bombings nearby.  We went to the a-Saftawi neighborhood west of Jabalya and stayed in a storage space that belongs to some relatives. But there was a bombing there, too. The sound was terrifying and very loud, and both we and the children were petrified. So the next day, 10 October 2023, we moved again, this time to an empty apartment belonging to relatives of mine in the neighborhood of al-Juneinah in Rafah. There were other families in the building, from the al-‘Aidy and Zein extended families. In our apartment there were about 20 of us – my family along with my brothers and their wives and children.  The situation in the apartment was better, even though there was no power and almost no water there either, and we could still hear the bombings. We decided to stay put because we had no choice. We had nowhere else to go.  On Monday, 23 October, at around 1:00 P.M., I went to get my hair cut and buy some things with my cousins Khaled al-‘Aidy (31), Ibrahim Abu Sala’h (26) and Ahmad Abu Sala’h (22). We went about 500 meters from the house. Meanwhile, my wife went out with my mother-in-law Zeinab (61), and my kids went to the neighbors, who are relatives of ours from the al-Kurd family. We reached the barbershop, and while we were sitting there, we heard a loud explosion. The whole place shook.  I immediately called my brother-in-law Ahmad, who’d gone to buy a portable charger, and he said the strike was very close, but he didn't know exactly where because everything was full of dust and smoke. A few minutes later, we realized the building we were sheltering in was the one bombed. We ran there and found it almost completely destroyed. I was in shock. The sight was horrifying. There were a lot of people there. We tried to move the rubble to look for people buried underneath. We took the people who weren’t injured to Rabe’ah al-‘Adawiyah School, west of Rafah.  We continued looking for injured and dead people. I lost my brother Mazen (44) and his children: ‘Azzah (20), Khaled (17), Mai (16), Muhammad (15), and Rahaf (8). I also lost my brother Ousamah (38), his wife Sumoud (29) and their children: Sharaf (9), Dana (6) and Alin (3).  My family and I moved to the school and stayed there for 10 days. It was very crowded, so we moved to another school, also in Rafah, which opened five days earlier and we thought would be less crowded. But when we got there, it was full, and we only found a small room. We put the seven women and 10 children from the family there. The young men and I stayed in the yard, out in the open. The conditions were tough. There was a mattress for every two people, and the children slept with their mothers.  Our situation is unbearable. It started raining today, and the nights are very cold. There is no food or water here, and we stand in line for everything. We get a jug of water that’s supposed to be enough for drinking, washing, dishwashing and laundry. I haven't showered or changed my clothes in more than 15 days. I don't have any clothes other than the ones I'm wearing. I lost all my clothes, and so did my wife and children. I also lost two mobile phones.  We’re surviving, but it feels soulless. We only hope this destructive war will end soon so we can go back to our homes and our lives, even though we don't even know if our homes are still there.  Read the testimony of Muhammad Nabil al-'Aidy Read the testimony of Mahmoud Nafez al-'Aidy, including a list of the people killed