Gaza teenager witnesses death of parents, siblings in ‘safe zone’

Gazan teenager Dima Allamdani witnessed death of her parents and siblings after they sought shelter in the ‘safe zone’ in the south, Reuters reported on Monday.

The 18-year-old’s  family prayed they would escape vicious air strikes by escaping to the south, like the Israeli forces instructed them to do so.

Just a few days after they left their home, Lamdani was told to go identify the bodies of her relatives in a morgue in Khan Younis, south of the strip.

She confirmed that she lost her parents, seven siblings, and four members of her uncle’s family in an Israeli air strike.

“They told us to evacuate your place and go to Khan Younis because it is safe… They betrayed us and bombed us,” she said.

Lamadani also said her family and her uncle’s travelled in two cars across Gaza, after facing the heaviest bombardment.

After staying at a temporary shelter in Khan Younis, she said that “At 4.30 a.m. I was awake and sitting with my aunt drinking coffee. Suddenly I woke up in the middle of ruins. Everyone around me was screaming, so I screamed.”

According to Lamadani, only her brother and two young cousins survived the airstrike.

“This is a nightmare. It will never be wiped from my memory,” she said.

she added, “I had a sister, 16. They wrote my name on the white sheet they wrapped her body in, they thought it was me.”