Gaza City – For three years, Palestinians in Gaza have lived with the destruction of their cities and displacement from their homes. Israel’s genocidal war, which started in October 2023, has taken more than 70,000 lives and determined the fates of those who remain. On October 27, Israelis will vote in a national election that will determine the next government and shape the country’s policies on Gaza.
Palestinians in Gaza and the occupied West Bank have no direct say in the vote, but many are closely following party campaigns, because the results might impact their lives. Thirty-year-old Maryam al-Dabala, who has been displaced about 14 times during the war, said her main concern is whether a new Israeli government will continue the same policies towards Gaza as current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s administration. Eisenkot was part of Netanyahu’s government during the first eight months of Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza.
He supports settlements in the West Bank, which are illegal under international law, and opposes the two-state solution. But given what she has endured, al-Dabala views another Netanyahu government, likely backed by far-right ministers, such as Itamar Ben-Gvir, as the worst possible outcome. Even the tents we live in do not protect us from the cold or from bombardment.” That uncertainty is felt most sharply by families who fear that any dramatic political change in Israel could be followed by further escalation on the ground in Gaza.
A “ceasefire” that came into effect on October 10 has not ended the violence in Gaza. At least 1,399 Palestinians have been killed and 4,863 injured since then. Almost all of Gaza’s population has been displaced at some point in the war, often multiple times, while many still live in tents and temporary structures in camps across the enclave.
Sixty-five-year-old Osama al-Arbaei has been displaced more than a dozen times during the war after his home in Gaza City was bombed, killing nine members of his family. Speaking from his current residence, a temporary shelter in a school, he said that he did not expect the situation to improve in Gaza regardless of who wins the election. There may be a small change in the margins, but the principle does not change,” he told Al Jazeera.
Life for al-Arbaei and many other people in Gaza is a series of violent episodes, cycles of displacement and worsening conditions. He has no income, and the only thing that matters for al-Arbaei about the elections is the impact they might have on food prices, his living conditions and employment opportunities “Food is still difficult and expensive, and there is no work. A box of tomatoes, for example, can cost 20 or 50 shekels ($6.63 to $16.59) while I don’t have even 2 shekels,” he said.
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