Global perspective Human stories
A displaced woman in Gaza sits on a mattress in a room with her belongings.

From The Field: Story of an aid worker trying to survive in Gaza

© UNOCHA Hala, a displaced mother and humanitarian worker, fled her home in Gaza to stay in Rafah.

From The Field: Story of an aid worker trying to survive in Gaza

Peace and Security

A humanitarian worker in Gaza has been documenting her struggles after being displaced on numerous occasions as she and her family flee ongoing bombardments by Israeli forces.

A displaced person sits inside a tent in a Rafah refugee camp in Gaza, with a UNICEF tent visible nearby.
Tents for displaced people in southern Gaza

When war began on 7 October, life changed dramatically overnight for mother-of-four Hala, as it did for the more than two million Palestinians who live in the Gaza Strip. She kept a diary of her experiences and shared it with the UN humanitarian agency (OCHA). 

It recounts her struggles to find safety in an abandoned apartment in the southern city of Rafah, her attempts to remain in contact with her family amid communications and electricity cuts, and the lack of food and sanitation.

You can read the diary entries, with photos of Hala and her family in Gaza, here.