This Eid al-Fitr, an Islamic festival otherwise known for being a day of happiness, Palestinians in Ghaza mourn the deaths of their 1063 beloved family members and friends. There is a grief over the loss of their loved ones but at the same time their natural instinct of self survival forces them to remain cautious and be prepared.
An Israeli missile can hit them anytime, anywhere and they don’t have an Iron Dome to protect them.
Even though both sides agreed to extend the 12 hour ceasefire on Sunday, initially rejected by both, it failed to stop them from firing at each other. However, it did bring down Israeli violence as only 19 Palestinians got killed on Sunday.
Palestinians remain cautious on Eid day despite the fact that no strikes have occurred so far because Israel has not officially accepted a ceasefire.
Sami Abu Zuhri, Hamas spokesman, said that Israel’s refusal to officially accept a ceasefire on Eid demonstrated “disregard for Muslims’ feelings and prayers.”
“The current relative calm is not a result of any deal,” Gaza interior ministry spokesman Iyad al-Buzm said in a statement, urging Palestinians to be cautious while celebrating Eid.
Many Palestinians are expected to take advantage of the quiet period to bury their dead at noon on Monday.
Instead of opening their houses to accept guests to celebrate Eid, Palestinians would be accepting visitors paying condolences.
“What Eid is there when children are being killed every day?” asked 15-year-old Majd Yassin.
World powers have stepped up pressure on the Hamas and especially Israel to immediately end their 21-day confrontation.
US President Barack Obama during the night phoned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to demand an “immediate, unconditional humanitarian ceasefire”, a call echoed several hours later by the UN Security Council.
United Nations role has come under severe criticism from every corner of the world. The UN main objective is to protect the weak from the aggression of powerful forces, however, during past 21 days of Israeli aggression on Palestinians, UN has found itself voiceless.
Imran Khan, chairman of the second largest party of Pakistan known as Tehreek-e-Insaf, also wrote a letter to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and conveyed his serious reservations over United Nations inability to play its due role as peace enforcer.
“UN has failed protect innocent civilians from Israeli aggression”, the letter said.
