US-Palestinian evacuees share harrowing experience of escaping Gaza, likening it to a ‘horror movie’

Suzan Beseiso, a 31-year-old Palestinian American, faced acute danger and endured multiple failed attempts before successfully crossing the Rafah crossing into Egypt to escape the bombardment of the Gaza Strip. Beseiso described the constant fear of being bombed while attempting to leave Gaza. The Rafah crossing, the only exit out of Gaza that does not border Israel, was closed for nearly two weeks due to diplomatic negotiations regarding aid and evacuations. Despite a fragile arrangement, a small amount of relief and a few evacuees have been able to leave Gaza. The ongoing month-long war has caused a deepening humanitarian crisis, leaving many of Gaza’s 2.3 million inhabitants displaced and struggling for shelter and safety. Beseiso, who has lived half her life in Gaza and half in the U.S., shared her experiences of cramming into a single room, running out of food and water, and enduring sleepless nights during air strikes. She narrowly escaped a strike near the border and described the terrifying taxi ride back into Gaza amidst bombings. Eventually, negotiations involving the United States, Israel, Qatar, and Egypt allowed the first foreigners and some Palestinians in need of urgent medical treatment to leave Gaza. Egypt has resisted mass displacement into Sinai due to historical fears of permanent displacement echoing the Nakba, in which Palestinians were forced to flee their homes during the 1948 war. Beseiso was fortunate to be among the first batch of foreign passport holders allowed to leave, but she struggled with the pain of separation, knowing her grandmother had experienced displacement 75 years ago. Others, like Jana Timraz and Yusra Batniji, also faced heartbreak, leaving loved ones behind. Timraz’s husband and family were unable to cross the border, while Batniji, who held U.S. citizenship, had to leave her husband, who was dealing with medical conditions, behind. Batniji, who had grown olive, lemon, and palm trees on her land in Gaza, hoped that people would take the dates and olives from her house so they wouldn’t go to waste.