"When the war began, I was seven months pregnant"

I am a mother of three children living in Gaza. I live in constant helplessness before my children’s eyes. They have lost their safety, stability, and their beautiful home. And I have lost the ability to protect them. When the war began, I was seven months pregnant with Ghaith, my third child. I gave birth while displaced in a school with no mattress, no safety, and no privacy. Then I was moved to tents without a private bathroom; we share one bathroom with ten other families.

Today, I suffer from severe pain, inflammation, and strain in my lower vertebrae due to the pregnancy and fetching water from a distant source. I also need a corneal transplant, and the operation costs $3,000, which would cripple my life. I can barely afford food, let alone the surgery. My husband lost his job at the beginning of the war. You are the only ones who can help me. If I lose my sight, I will lose the last thing connecting me to my children’s lives. I write these words with a broken heart, asking for a chance at treatment just so I can still hold and care for them.

My eldest son, Muhammad, is 11 years old. He lost his entire childhood in the war and is still unable to access online schools because he doesn’t have a phone to study with his brother, Yassin. My son Yassin has been deprived of everything, even a peaceful night’s sleep. He suffers from mental health issues as a result of the continuous bombing.

And poor Ghaith cries whenever he sees anything, and I can’t provide for him. My children have gone days without eating. Sometimes they drink water and salt.

You can donate to support Noreen and her family here.