Despite a very tangible risk to their lives, more and more of Gaza’s residents are expressing their opposition to Hamas' actions in the Strip. One elderly woman, asked to describe the situation by an Al Jazeera reporter, was seen in a video explaining how the humanitarian aid entering Gaza doesn’t reach the residents at all, and goes to Hamas instead.
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"All of the aid goes underground," the elderly woman told the reporter asking her about the difficult situation in the region. "A lot of aid enters, but it doesn’t reach the people." The reporter tried to correct her, saying Hamas claims that very little humanitarian aid truly enters, and whatever does is distributed to Gazans immediately.
The elderly woman dismissed the reporter’s words with a wave of her hand and pointed at him, saying: "No. All the aid goes to them, to their homes. They take it. They also shot at me and they do whatever they want to me."
Ofir Gendelman, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s spokesperson to the Arab media, said critics in Gaza are starting to raise their voices. "The Gazans have started to criticize and denounce Hamas for what it has brought upon them – crimes, oppression, humiliation, fear, and hunger. I say to the Gazans –there is hope yet. After Hamas is eliminated, your lives will improve. Gaza will be rebuilt, enjoy security, stability, and prosperity because no terror organization will be present in the Strip," he said,
Meanwhile, in unusual footage released Thursday, masses of Gazans are seen outside the UNRWA offices in Dir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, requesting food and supplies. An UNRWA spokesperson in Gaza warned this week that the needs of residents in the coastal strip are very large due to the winter season. He called for clothing and blankets to be allowed inside the Strip in large quantities, saying the aid entering Gaza at the moment is "a drop in the ocean."
Gazans gathering outside UNRWA building in Dir al-Balah
On Wednesday, the IDF spokesperson in Arabic, Lt. Col. Avichay Adraee, published a segment from an interview on Palestinian radio with a resident of Gaza. In the interview, the resident can be heard cursing Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar for the ruin that he and Hamas brought upon the residents of the Strip.
Last week, the Palestinian Red Crescent Society reported that during the cease-fire following the hostage release deal, over 1,000 trucks carrying humanitarian aid entered the Gaza Strip. The aid, as is seen in the footage, isn’t distributed by any organization in a clear manner, leading to chaos and unrest among residents.