Ayish Younis: A Life Between Despair and Hope in War-Torn Gaza

Tue Oct 21 2025 17:04:30 GMT+0300 (Eastern European Summer Time)

Ayish Younis reflects on his life from the initial displacement during the 1948 war to his current struggles in a tent in Gaza, emphasizing the ongoing crisis and the uncertainty of the future.

Ayish Younis, 89, recounts his life journey starting from fleeing his hometown in 1948 to living in makeshift shelters in contemporary Gaza. Forced to leave during recent conflicts, Ayish grapples with the bleak future of his homeland, expressing doubts about the possibility of rebuilding amidst devastation. His narrative highlights the resilience of Palestinian families, aspirations for peace, and the heavy toll of ongoing wars on generations.

Ayish Younis: A Life Between Despair and Hope in War-Torn Gaza

I rode away on a camel with my grandmother, along a sandy road, and I started to cry. These words from 89-year-old Ayish Younis reflect a lifetime of strife and loss, starting from his childhood in 1948 when he and his family fled their home in the village of Barbara due to the Arab-Israeli war.

As a child, Ayish witnessed the chaos of displacement. He recalls, We were scared for our lives. On our own, we had no means to fight, so we all started to leave. That traumatic moment marked the beginning of Ayish's lifelong journey through war and resilience.

After being forced out of his ancestral land, Ayish and his family settled in the Gaza Strip, where they initially used scraps of wood to make shelters. What followed was decades of struggle, resilience, and eventual modest prosperity, leading Ayish to build a family of 18 children, but not without tragedies along the way.

In recent conflict, Ayish has found himself back in a tent, forced out of his home in Rafah after recent evacuations ordered by the Israeli military. His remote canvas abode reminds him of the modest existence he experienced as a young refugee.

An impending view of a broken Gaza lingers in his mind. Amidst the rubble, Ayish’s sentiments speak volumes: I don't believe Gaza has any future. He sees the destruction as beyond restoration despite international efforts, with entire generations burdened by trauma and loss.

Through the eyes of Ayish's family, including his sons Ahmed and Nizar, the impact of war reverberates. We've experienced the trauma that reshaped our lives. The hope rests on the youth, who might rebuild, but the scale of destruction looms large. Their collective future remains uncertain amidst the wreckage of their homes and community.

Ayish dreams of returning to Barbara, his lost hometown. Holding on to hope as an essential virtue, he expresses a steadfast belief in the resilience of the Palestinian spirit, motivated by the hope that one day, their homeland can be rebuilt.