Eileen feeding her baby brother Jalal. Photo: Batoul Mohamed Hassan Abou Ali

Being a mother is not easy, but it is a beautiful feeling when you hear your little child laughing, crying, and using baby words. You start your days with the beautiful sight of an innocent face.  

I thank my God for letting me experience the grace of procreation. I am a mother of two children, Elieen and Jalal. Elieen is two years old, and Jalal is a newborn.

When I gave birth to my children, Gaza was a scene of utter destruction. It was horrible. The sky was so bloody and terrifying. Gaza witnessed a heartbreaking scene of dead babies, children, teenagers, women, and fighters.

Leaving behind everything precious

Since October 7, 2023, we have left everything precious behind us. We evacuated the North of the Gaza Strip, fleeing to the South, and we could take nothing with us.

I was a newlywed bride who left her home, family, city, and friends behind, silently in the darkness, without saying farewell. I was married on September 24, 2023, living peacefully for 12 days before the war began in Gaza.

In those days, life was full of martyrs, death, and destruction. We lost many loved ones and memories.

Our driver took us to a school in the south. We sat, disappointed on the stairs, waiting for a room. My husband’s aunt’s home in Khan Younis was the only option for us. We went to her house.

Then, on November 19, I discovered that I was pregnant. It was shocking news for me; my senses were jolted. But then I was happy that a baby was on the way.

At the home of my husband’s aunt, there was no private space, and I never felt peaceful; more than 15 people were living in that small house.

Although it was exhausting, I was happy to know I would become a mother.

After leaving Khan Younis, we headed to Al-Mawasi, then Rafah, and then Rafah Al-Mawasi. We camped in tents where there was no secure, comfortable place and no privacy. Its climate was so harsh, it was very hot in summer and very cold in the winter. There were lots of unknown insects. You could not bear it for a second.

During the six months of my pregnancy, I was extremely tired and sore. Day after day, I felt more pain. My father came to Rafah Al-Mawasi to visit.

He said with a broken heart, “My daughter, I will never leave you.”

He took me to Al-Nuseirat to see my siblings and mother. This was very good for my mental health. Then he took me to the Al-Awda Hospital on May 15.

An ambulance outside Al-Awda Hospital. Photo: Batoul Mohamed Hassan Abou Ali

I stayed in hospital for a week, and then the pressure from the baby increased. Pre-eclampsia was diagnosed and the doctor decided that I needed to deliver soon.

The doctor found a gloomy room which was the Caesarean operating room, and I stayed there for a week before undergoing a C-section and giving birth at my seventh month because the fetal pulse of my unborn baby was weak. It was now May 21, 2024.

It was a painful and nervous moment for my husband. But he stood by me till I was discharged.

I called my baby Eileen. She was placed in intensive care because she was born prematurely with a very low birth weight.

After a month, and before Eid Al-Fitr, they allowed me to cradle her.

I have worked hard to ensure Eileen’s health and strength. Now, Elieen is 2 years old. She has a friend, her cousin Jalal. She calls him Lal and he calls her Lala. 

A ceasefire was announced so we returned to our beloved Gaza. We lived a beautiful life for six months, but unfortunately it was tinged with starvation.

The genocide returned, so we had to evacuate again.

Doing it all again

The cycle repeated itself; in March 2025, I was pregnant again. This time, I was careful with my blood pressure.

Once more, we lived in a tent where we could not bear the summer and winter seasons. I tried to adapt to living in such harsh conditions.

The second birth, on December 29, 2025 was also a C-section in Al-Awda Hospital.

I received medical treatment for a day.

At home, I sat for a long time to recover.

I am trying hard to provide bottles and milk for my babies. I don’t know what will happen with us in the future, so I am trying very hard to let them live a good life.

My little Jalal is lighting up Gaza.

In Gaza, women are suffering terribly and are deprived of living a good life. The Israeli occupation affects our health and continues to kill many infants and innocent children.

If a woman becomes pregnant, she must rest and live in a comfortable place, not in the streets or in a tent. She must eat healthy food and drink clean water. How can babies survive, let alone thrive?

In contrast, in Gaza, women are forced to live through all of these horrible moments without any complaint!