Israeli attacks in Gaza cast shadow on upcoming Eid holiday in West Bank

By Kays Ebu Semra

RAMALLAH, Palestine (AA) — This year, the shadow of ongoing Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip looms large over Palestinians preparing to observe the upcoming Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr.

The bloodshed in the Gaza Strip, despite the UN Security Council demanding an immediate cease-fire and the International Court of Justice ordering Israel to allow the entry of humanitarian aid and measures to prevent genocide, has cast a shadow over the Eid celebrations, according to Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.

Highlighting the humanitarian catastrophe in the Gaza Strip, many Palestinians are urging on social media for this year's Eid al-Fitr to be limited to prayers, family visits, and simple offerings of dates and coffee.

Major urban markets in the West Bank have been nearly empty in the final days of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which Eid al-Fitr follows.

- 'We feel their pain in our hearts'

With almost 33,200 Palestinians killed and nearly 75,900 injured amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities in Gaza, the devastation in the Palestinian enclave has taken a massive toll on the holiday spirit.

People in Gaza are unable to celebrate while their children are being killed and homes destroyed, 67-Year-Old Samih Nezzal told Anadolu in Ramallah.

"The people of the West Bank and Gaza are one people. We stand with them and feel their pain in our hearts," he said.

Nezzal, who said Israel's actions have surpassed "even the Nazis," added that it would be "impossible for us to experience the joy of Eid while our people in Gaza can't find food and sleep."

- No Eid in West Bank

Iyd Kerace, a 71-year-old resident of the West Bank, stuck a similar tone, saying that as long as Palestinians are being killed in Gaza, no person with a conscience can take part in celebrations, save for Eid prayers and family visits.

Kerace, a resident of the West Bank, said: "There will be no Eid greetings or celebrations.

"Can there be talk of happiness while war continues? Rivers of blood flow in Gaza, people have no food to eat, clothes to wear, or homes to shelter in. How can there be an Eid in the West Bank?"

Najat Jabr, a resident of the West Bank city of Nablus, said his family did not do any holiday shopping this year.

Jabr recounted how in past years, families would come together in Ramadan to bake holiday cookies, but that this year, the Eid came with great sorrow due to the Israeli onslaught.

"For the first time, we won't be baking holiday cookies at home. In solidarity with the people of Gaza, our treats will be limited to dates and coffee," he said.

- Markets empty

As Eid al-Fitr approaches this year, markets and bazaars in Ramallah are witnessing a marked decline in customers, a situation mirrored in other West Bank cities.

Palestinian merchant Mumin Selim said that, whereas in previous years, markets would be overflowing with people shopping for Eid supplies, this year they were empty.

Selim said that both the humanitarian disaster in Gaza and the escalating tension in the West Bank have cast a shadow over the Eid festivities.

Ala Assaf, who owns a confectionery shop in Ramallah, also highlighted a "significant decrease" in sweet sales this year due to the "genocide" occurring in Gaza.

Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on the Gaza Strip since a cross-border attack in early last October by the Palestinian group, Hamas, killed less than 1,200 people.

Besides the rising number of casualties, Israel has also imposed a crippling blockade on the Gaza Strip, leaving its population, particularly residents of northern Gaza, on the verge of starvation.

The Israeli war has pushed 85% of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water, and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Tensions have been high across the West Bank since Israel launched a deadly military offensive against the Gaza Strip after a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023.

At least 459 Palestinians from the West Bank have been killed by the Israeli forces and settlers since Oct. 7, in addition to over 4,750 others injured.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which last week asked it to do more to prevent famine in Gaza.