More than 100,000 Gazans stranded abroad still wait to go home

Omar al-Hassayna fled Gaza for Cairo after an Israeli airstrike wiped out much of his family. Three years later, he is still waiting for enough stability, security and rebuilding in his devastated homeland to go back.

He is one of more than 100,000 Gazans who left during the war and remain stranded abroad, according to Palestinian Authority figures, Dawn reported, citing Reuters.

“I am waiting for the opportunity, I am waiting for the moment when Gaza becomes stable so I can return to my country, and be a productive member of this country, and be a positive force for the country,” he said.

308 relatives in one strike

On November 22, 2023, Israeli strikes destroyed a cluster of apartment buildings in Gaza City where his extended family had gathered for shelter. Some 308 members of the family were killed, according to Palestinian authorities.

Among them were his wife, four of their adult sons, and four small grandchildren, one of them a baby only a few months old.

In August, Hassayna watched on video from Cairo as relatives buried 112 family members whose bodies had finally been recovered from the rubble. Dozens are still missing.

A family scattered

The survivors are spread across three countries:

• Cairo: his eldest son Mohammed and his four children, the widow of another son with her daughter, and his brothers
• Turkiye: a daughter, medically evacuated with her husband and six children
• Gaza: another daughter, still in the territory with her five children; her husband was killed in the attack

Hassayna once ran a business in Gaza selling firefighting and safety equipment. He now sells some surviving stock from time to time to pay for his life in Cairo, where he has remarried.

A ceasefire that changed little

Nearly a year after the ceasefire that was meant to lead to reconstruction and a full Israeli withdrawal, little has changed. Israeli forces still hold more than 60 percent of the territory and carry out almost daily strikes, while most Palestinians live in temporary shelters with too little aid and no sign of rebuilding.

Fear of permanent exile

Everyone who left was vetted by both Israel and Egypt, but many have found it hard to go back. Some Israeli politicians have openly called for encouraging all of Gaza’s people to leave, and for stopping those who left from returning. About 7,000 people have returned so far.

Hassayna believes Egypt will not allow a mass displacement of Palestinians from Gaza. “If Gaza returns. If there is an international agreement (with) a comprehensive situation for the Palestinian people and construction begins, why would I delay?” he said.

Why it matters

The right of Palestinians to return home lies at the heart of the conflict. For the 100,000 who fled Gaza’s bombing, the fear is that a temporary escape could become permanent exile. A real reconstruction plan, and guarantees that they can go back, are essential to any lasting peace. Read our report on the 800 Palestinian teachers killed in the war.

This article draws on reporting by Dawn and Reuters.