Voices from Gaza: Protests demand an end to war and suffering
Saad is one of the protest coordinators, working with 14 others who he says came together spontaneously to organise the demonstrations.
The main trigger, Saad explains, was a Facebook discussion after new Israeli eviction orders were issued last Monday.
'The nightmare of displacement once again was the primary reason that pushed us to do something to demand an end to the war on Gaza,' Saad told Al Jazeera by phone from Beit Lahiya on Thursday.
'The idea of taking to the streets in protests, holding signs calling for an immediate end to the war, was born.'
Saad was forced to flee Beit Lahiya two months into Israel's war on Gaza. On January 27, when hundreds of thousands of displaced residents were allowed back to northern Gaza, he returned to the rubble of his home.
Going back to bombings and eviction notices from the Israeli army was more than the Facebook group's members could bear, Saad added.
He attributes the response to the sense of abandonment felt by Palestinians, as the world, in his words, has left them to face displacement, starvation, killing, bombardment, and arrests alone.
On Tuesday, videos began to appear on social media of hundreds of people in Gaza, particularly in Beit Lahiya, chanting against the war and calling for Hamas to step down.
The demand for Hamas to relinquish power was not an official goal, Saad clarified, rather, the call came spontaneously from protesters.
'It's difficult to control people's opinions during protests, especially when they are exhausted and deeply frustrated,' Saad added.
'The people's demands stem from an unbearable reality … If ending the war requires Hamas to step aside, then so be it.'
However, Saad added, he rejects any political exploitation of the protests to attack Hamas and the Palestinian resistance.
'Whether we agree or disagree with Hamas, they're ultimately part of our people … They're not from another planet,' he added.
Commenting on the protests, Hamas Political Bureau member Basem Naim said on Facebook: 'Everyone has the right to cry out in pain and raise their voice against the aggression against our people and the betrayal of our nation.
'Whether our people have taken to the streets or not, we are part of them and they are part of us,' he continued, denouncing any exploitation of the situation, 'whether to advance dubious political agendas or to deflect responsibility from the criminal aggressor, the occupation and its army.'
As images of the demonstrations in Beit Lahiya circulated, commentators inside and outside Gaza offered differing interpretations.
Some see them as a natural expression of the majority's demands – an end to Israel's war of extermination against Gaza.
Others focused on the call for Hamas to relinquish control of the Strip and allow a restructuring to facilitate an end to the war.
Munthir al-Hayek, Gaza spokesperson for Fatah – Hamas's political rival that dominates the Palestinian Authority (PA) – wrote on Facebook, urging Hamas to 'heed the people's voice' and step down, enabling the PA and the Palestine Liberation Organization to assume responsibility.
On the Israeli side, Israeli military spokesperson Avichay Adraee expressed support for the protests, framing them as wholly anti-Hamas.
In Gaza, these varying framings have sown confusion about the demonstrations' motivations, but organisers – and al-Barawi – insist that the core demand is ending the war.
Hisham al-Barawi, 52, a protest participant, told Al Jazeera on Wednesday that, contrary to media claims, they were not 'led' into the streets by any external forces.
'We're here to say: 'enough oppression and death.' Every two years, we go through wars. We raise our children for years, only to lose them.
'We build our homes, only for them to be bombed in seconds. We're exhausted … we're only human!' al-Barawi shouted.
'Hamas … we do not hate them. But I call on them to step down. Their 18 years of rule were filled with wars and escalations. We want to live in peace.'
Marching near al-Barawi was Mahmoud Jihad al-Haj Ahmed, 34, a doctor at Kamal Adwan Hospital.
'Our protests are independent. We want the war to stop. We refuse to have our lives gambled with any further,' he said.
'We need humanitarian aid. We need border crossings to open. We need a dignified life.'
Al-Haj Ahmed recounted Israel killing his parents and sister, but he did not have time to grieve as his work at the hospital consumed him until the day the Israeli army forced everyone inside to leave.
'We have so many children and youngsters who are amputees … so many wounded people who need to travel for treatment, but they're blocked from leaving,' he said.
'It's dire.'
Regarding the calls for Hamas to relinquish power, al-Haj Ahmed said that if Hamas stepping down would alleviate people's suffering, he would support that without hesitation.
'This requires prioritising the greater public interest. The suffering is unbearable,' he said.
'I believe the solution is a completely independent local administration with no political affiliations to govern Gaza and lead us out of this crisis.
'I urge our brothers in Hamas to give others a chance to govern Gaza. The next leadership does not have to be against Hamas, we have many competent national figures who can manage the Strip.'
Saed Falafel, 60, has also been protesting, demanding an end to Israel's war.
'We want to live. That is our main demand,' Saed said.
'If you walk through Gaza's markets, you wouldn't find a single tomato or egg. We're starving and being killed in every way possible. Within a week, we will be in the grip of a major famine.
'We have no interest in being anyone's enemies. We are civilians who just want to live in peace and have a life worth living. We want a solution to this catastrophe.
'Anyone in the world with an ounce of humanity and compassion would feel our pain. Act now to help us.
'We are human beings.'
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