I can't forget the horror': a young mother on giving birth twice during the Gaza war

"Up until that point the 26-year-old had meticulously prepared for her son's arrival. She visited her doctor twice a month because the pregnancy was high risk, had regular ultrasounds and took vitamins. I love the details, she says. Living on the east side of Gaza City, close to the border with Israel, and knowing that being pregnant would make moving fast difficult, she decided to go to her parents in the west of Gaza City that first day."

"In late October, about five weeks before her due date, Al Gherbawi was near a massive Israeli strike on a residential building in Gaza City. It felt like an earthquake, she remembers. She fled to al-Shifa hospital, where displaced people filled every space. Using a bathroom was nearly impossible. I can't forget the horror of that night, she says. There was a place for unidentified bodies and a barrel for body parts."

"In displacement camps, using the bathroom remained a nightmare. She would wake someone to accompany her frequently during the night. Too scared to go into labour naturally, because finding transportation, especially during the night, would be difficult, she asked doctors at Nasser hospital in the city of Khan Younis to induce her. When the nearby building was struck while she was in labour, she feared panic and chaos could lead to her baby being mixed up"

Hadeel Al Gherbawi was seven months pregnant when the war began in October 2023 and had prepared with frequent prenatal visits, ultrasounds and vitamins. She moved from Gaza City's east to her parents in the west on the first day of fighting and has been displaced 13 times; her house with her husband was destroyed. About five weeks before her due date she escaped a massive strike and fled to al-Shifa hospital, where displaced people filled every space and sanitation collapsed. She smelled decomposition and saw areas for unidentified bodies and body parts. She and her husband went south to give birth, endured dangerous bathroom conditions in displacement camps, requested an induction at Nasser hospital because nighttime transport was unsafe, and feared that panic during a nearby strike could lead to her baby being mixed up.

Read at www.theguardian.com