A displaced Palestinian travels on a cart with his belongings, as he flees amid an Israeli military operation, in Gaza City, August 22, 2025. (Credit: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa)
Noor al-Yacoubi is a 27-year-old translator and writer. She hasn't left the Gaza Strip since the war began on Oct. 7, 2023, and has been sharing reflections on her life with L'Orient Today during the war.Israel continues to threaten its ultimate intention — the occupation of Gaza. The threat lingers in the air, and with it, tension spreads. Faces are pale. Hearts quake.Everyone asks the same question: “Are you willing to leave?” It now begins every single conversation.But the truth is that no one really wants to leave this city. Despite destruction, famine, fear and loss, people cling to what little they still have, more stubbornly than ever. Yet the final decision isn’t ours. No matter how strongly we resist, once the tanks advance and the bombs fall closer, we will have no choice but to go.We say we are ready to die, but we are...
Noor al-Yacoubi is a 27-year-old translator and writer. She hasn't left the Gaza Strip since the war began on Oct. 7, 2023, and has been sharing reflections on her life with L'Orient Today during the war.Israel continues to threaten its ultimate intention — the occupation of Gaza. The threat lingers in the air, and with it, tension spreads. Faces are pale. Hearts quake.Everyone asks the same question: “Are you willing to leave?” It now begins every single conversation.But the truth is that no one really wants to leave this city. Despite destruction, famine, fear and loss, people cling to what little they still have, more stubbornly than ever. Yet the final decision isn’t ours. No matter how strongly we resist, once the tanks advance and the bombs fall closer, we will have no choice but to go.We say we are ready to die,...
