we are not numbers
emerging writers from Palestine tell their stories and advocate for their human rights
‘For minutes, we just stared into each other’s eyes, unable to believe that after 15 months of separation, we were finally together again.’
Amira and Jihad, together again after 15 months of separation. Photo provided by Amira Al-Wazir
The war in Gaza has torn families apart, leaving their lives shattered and their futures uncertain. Many women were displaced to the south, forced to separate from their husbands who remained in the north. Here are the stories of two such women who were lucky enough to be reunited with their partners.
Amira Al-Wazir, 34, became engaged to Jihad Abu Shaaban in September 2023, just 15 days before war erupted on October 7. She had planned to marry in December and had already prepared everything for the wedding and their home. However, when the war began, she and her family were forced to evacuate their home in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood of Gaza City. Initially, Amira sought refuge with her fiancé’s family, but soon after, she and her own family were forced to flee to southern Gaza, settling in Mawasi Khan Younis on November 16.
Jihad was unable to accompany her, as his family remained in northern Gaza. Days later the roads closed, making their separation inevitable.
“For months communication was scarce,” Amira told me. “Sometimes we would go weeks without a single call or video chat. When the roads finally reopened, I did not hesitate to go back on foot to the north of the Gaza Strip to reunite with Jihad after a year and five months.”
On February 2, 2025, Amira reunited with Jihad. She arrived unexpectedly, exhausted and unwell, but determined to see him again.
“He didn’t know I was coming. I told him I had the flu and that the road would be crowded, so he didn’t expect me,” she said.
“I left Mawasi Khan Younis, and as soon as I reached Al-Shalihat, the first point in Gaza City, I called him. He told me he was at his parents’ destroyed home in Tel Al-Hawa, trying to salvage some belongings. When he asked where I was, I lied, saying I was still in the tent area. I reached where he was, but I could barely recognize the area because of the destruction.
Amira when she reached Gaza City after a long journey from the south. Photo provided by Amira Al-Wazir
“When he saw me, his reaction was a mix of shock and disbelief. For minutes, we just stared into each other’s eyes, unable to believe that after 15 months of separation, we were finally together again. He had tried many times to reach the south, but it had been impossible.”
Their joy was short-lived, however. With no home left in the north, Amira had no choice but to return to the south a day after meeting Jihad.
A few weeks later, Jihad made the daring journey south to be with her.
“I was still in a tent in Mawasi Khan Younis since my home was destroyed, along with my office where I worked in marketing and media,” she told me.
“Now, everything is uncertain. We are together but we have no home, and rent prices are unbearably high. His job at a restaurant, which was bombed, came to a halt during the war. We’re back to square one, trying to rebuild our lives, our work, and our future, but nothing is clear.”
Ansam Naeem had always dreamed of having another child after the birth of her firstborn. After undergoing a challenging medical procedure, she became pregnant and was overjoyed as she entered her third month. Her doctor’s appointment was scheduled for October 7, 2023.
That morning, chaos erupted across Gaza. Unsure of what to do, Ansam called her mother.
“Come to the south; the situation is dangerous,” her mother, Samera, urged.
Taking her mother’s advice, Ansam left with her 5-year-old son Omar for Deir Al-Balah, where her parents’ house was located. Days later, war engulfed the city, and her husband Arafat couldn’t leave it. Soon after, she received the devastating news that their home in Tel Al-Hawa, a neighborhood of Gaza City, had been destroyed in an Israeli airstrike, along with the buildings near Al-Quds Hospital.
For a year and a half, she endured displacement, exhaustion, and emotional distress. The separation took a toll on her mental well-being, as she constantly worried about her husband while navigating pregnancy and raising their young boy on her own. This is what her mother shared about her life at that time.
On March 12, 2024, she gave birth at Al-Awda Hospital in Nuseirat, far from her husband, who had been unable to see her throughout the pregnancy.
“I never imagined that I would go through these days and have to be both a mother and a father,” Ansam said.
When Israel declared that Al-Rasheed Road was open, Ansam’s husband urged her not to come immediately, due to the overwhelming crowds.
But then, he surprised her. Walking from Gaza to Deir Al-Balah, he arrived unannounced. Overcome with emotion, Ansam wept as they reunited in a profoundly moving moment.
“Ansam was surprised when he arrived. She shouted, ‘Arafat, Arafat. I never imagined I would see you again,’ and cried in his arms,” her mother said.
She added, “As Arafat spent his days in displacement, moving from Tel Al-Hawa to Sheikh Radwan and then to the Beach Camp in the north, he had witnessed death with his own eyes. They never expected to meet or see each other again.”
However, their daughter, Mayas, did not recognize him. Having never seen him before, she refused to go to him. Omar also looked at his father with confusion.
Despite the hardships, Ansam and her husband decided to return to Gaza together that same day, walking 8 to 10 kilometers for hours until they reached their destination by 9 p.m. Days later, she posted a photo on her Instagram of her husband with their daughter Mayas, standing next to the rubble of their house, with the caption:
“About my little girl, Mayas, who was born during the war. Ten months have passed in her life without being able to recognize her father’s face except through pictures. She finally met him, but she couldn’t understand why his eyes filled with tears or why he held her as if he feared she would slip away.”
Mayas and her father near the rubble of their home. Photo provided by Ansam Naeem
The stories of Amira and Ansam are just two among thousands of Palestinian women whose lives have been upended by war. These women continue to hold onto hope, waiting for the day they can reunite with their loved ones, rebuild their lives, and find stability in an uncertain future.
Mayas in her family’s demolished home. Photo provided by Ansam Naeem
