Palestinian grandparents care for 36 children orphaned by Israel in Gaza

Since Israel started its genocidal war in Gaza two years ago, entire generations have been exterminated by the country’s population, which adds to the acute suffering of the already long-suffering Palestinian civilian population in the area.

According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics’ April report, over 39 000 children in Gaza have lost one or both of their parents. According to the bureau, about 17, 000 children have been denied both parents since October 2023, according to the report.

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One couple is now raising 36 grandchildren whose parents were murdered by Israel in Gaza City. They now have to deal with a myriad of daily problems of keeping them safe.

Among those who have passed generations is the Aliwa family. Hamed and Rida Aliwa are raising the orphaned grandchildren because their five sons were all killed during Israel’s two-year occupation of Gaza.

According to 60-year-old Rida, “These children need care,” Rida told Tareq Abu Azzoum in Gaza City. They require special attention, food, and water. I’m under a lot of stress because of it.

Each of these children has gone through the pain and suffering of Israel’s two-year occupation of Gaza. They have also learned to eat one loaf of bread and sleep through explosion-speech-healing.

Hamed and Rida wake up each morning, not for themselves, but for those who now refer to themselves as “mother and father.”

Rida says, “I would be lying if I said I didn’t miss them,” but she is unable to hide the grief of losing her sons. They mean the world to me. They are so dear to me. My sons were everything to me, and they were the reason I persevered. I’m currently taking care of their injured kids.

One child has been killed every hour for the past 24 months, making up at least 20, 000 children. According to UNICEF, 3, 000 to 4, 000 Gaza children have lost one or more limbs.

Finding food, getting clean water, and keeping the kids safe are all a difficult task for the Aliwas.

According to Hamed Aliwa, “the fundamentals of life are almost unavoidable.”

They lack no assurances about the dangers that tomorrow will bring, and there is no permanent shelter nearby.

On October 10, a United States-brokered ceasefire was in effect in Gaza. About 473, 000 people have returned to northern Gaza since the truce started, where they are battling severe property destruction and severe food and water shortages, according to the UN.