'Fear and anxiety': Daily life of a student in Gaza

Since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war, testimonies have been coming out of Gaza from trapped Palestinians under attack.

One of those voices is from Rafah, in southern Gaza, near Egypt. Shahd Safi is a 22-year-old English literature student who teaches and works as a freelance journalist.

WBUR is a nonprofit news organization. Our coverage relies on your financial support. If you value articles like the one you're reading right now, give today.

Like so many, Shahd and her family fled their home to escape Israeli strikes. Now, she lives with her grandparents and other families sheltering together.

Before the Oct. 7 Hamas attack and the continued Israeli response, Shahd attended Al-Aqsa University in Gaza City. She used to spend her days studying and exercising, but that isn’t the case anymore.

“All of my days are all about fear and anxiety, worries,” she says, “and also not enough studying, not enough working. It's just that I can't, due to the electricity shortages and also the internet bad connectivity.”

Israel has cut off the internet and power repeatedly in Gaza. And when it comes to food and water, Shahd says flour is hard to come by. Her siblings have to queue up for hours for bread and water.