Deir el-Balah, Gaza Strip, Palestine – Wasayef Abed woke up on Wednesday to murmurs among her fellow displaced Palestinians in central Gaza’s Deir el-Balah.The discussion was centred on United States President Donald Trump and his announcement that the US would “take over” Gaza. In Trump’s comments, made as he stood next to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu – the man responsible for the decision to devastate Gaza in Israel’s war – the US president even said that Palestinians should move from the enclave permanently.
Some of his officials, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, suggested on Wednesday that any departure would be temporary, although Trump’s language evoked both 19th-century colonialism and the spectre of ethnic cleansing.
The 36-year-old Wasayef’s reaction is one of indifference.
“I didn’t pay much attention,” she said as she made her way to check on her rain-soaked tent.
“I don’t even own a mobile phone or any means of following the news,” she added indifferently, her tired face betraying her exhaustion. Advertisement
“What I do know is that my mother and I will never leave Gaza, no matter what happens. All we are waiting for now is a way to return to our destroyed home in the north.”
Wasayef sees Trump’s statements as a form of pressure – on both the Palestinian people and armed groups in Gaza, including Hamas.
“I can tell you that people here wi …
