"Eid of sorrow": Gaza marks festival amid Israeli airstrikes, starvation Photo

At least 20 Palestinians, mostly women and children, were killed on the first day of Eid al-Fitr as relentless Israeli bombardment and a worsening food crisis cast a shadow over what should have been a joyous occasion.

Instead of festive gatherings and celebratory feasts, families prayed in the rubble of mosques, mourning their lost loved ones and struggling to find food, Caliber.Az reports, citing foreign media.

For the people of Gaza, this year’s Eid was one of grief, hunger, and despair.

“It’s the Eid of Sadness,” said Adel al-Shaer, who joined prayers in the devastated town of Deir el-Balah. His voice trembled as he recalled the unbearable loss—20 members of his extended family killed, including four young nephews in an airstrike just days ago. “We have lost everything—our children, our homes, our future.”

Israel resumed its intense bombing campaign and ground operations on March 18, abruptly ending a fragile two-month ceasefire. Since then, hundreds more Palestinian civilians have been killed, and for four weeks, no food, fuel, or humanitarian aid has been allowed to enter Gaza. Starvation now looms over the enclave’s two million people.

Efforts by Arab mediators to restore the truce continue, with Hamas confirming its acceptance of a new proposal from Egypt and Qatar. However, the exact terms remain unclear. Israel, working with the United States, has put forward its own counterproposal.

The humanitarian catastrophe deepens by the day. Gaza’s Health Ministry reports that the death toll has now surpassed 50,000, as Israel’s war continues to decimate entire families, leaving nothing but ruins and grief in its wake.

By Aghakazim Guliyev