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War in Gaza has taken a heavy toll on women as they try to protect and care for their families in a place where death and suffering are woven through every aspect of life.
The National spoke to six of these women on Friday as the Arab world marked Mother's Day, and as Israel continued its devastating and deadly attacks on the territory.
Their stories show that despite having their strength drained and resilience tested by the loss of loved ones, the destruction of their homes and the lack of access to the bare essentials of life, they cling to the hope of a return to normal life.
Narmeen Al Zayan, 40
Narmeen was once a mother of five. She lost her firstborn, Bassim, 14, and her sister in an Israeli air strike that hit the house next door. She says she no longer counts the days, only the empty spaces they left behind.
She wishes with all her heart for the bloodshed to stop, she said – not just for her but for all mothers, who should never have to feel what she feels.
She also longs for a moment of peace, a chance to grieve without the constant worry of surviving another day.
Suhair Mikdad, 60
Suhair has raised 10 children, ranging in age from 36 to 14. The war has taken from her two sisters, her home and the sense of security she fought to create for her children.
She said she still hopes her sisters could answer her phone calls so she could tell them she is surviving, living in two small rooms in the ruins of her home. She worries every second for her children because she cannot bear another loss.
She said she would tell her sisters that life has lost its meaning; that her youngest daughter still asks for chicken but she has none to give; that her son, after fasting through the day, wants a warm, comforting meal but all she has to offer is rice and macaroni.
Grief is an unrelenting weight, she said. The world keeps moving, but for her, time stands still in the absence of her sisters.
Ibtisam Abu Hashim, 57
For 10 years, Ibtisam poured her soul into building her dream home, a villa she had only lived in for one year before she was forced to flee by the war. She cannot go back as it is no longer standing, she said.
She dreams of the war ending, of reuniting with her eldest daughter and son, who left Gaza while she remained behind, unable to join them.
Her home is not just walls and windows, her home is family, she said, and she aches to bring them back together again.
Manthoma Najeeb, 70
Manthoma says her heart beats with longing for her eldest son Ahmad, a doctor who was taken away by Israeli soldiers during a raid on the hospital where he worked. She does not know where he is, if he is safe, if he is alive. She aches to hold him again, to hear his voice, to feel the security of life that vanished the moment he was taken, she said.
Her wish is to go back, if only for a single day, to the time when her home was full, with her children and grandchildren laughing around her.
Hannen Othman, 37
Hannen is a mother who planned, who built, who dreamt. She spent years shaping a home with her husband, only to see it reduced to rubble in the war.
She wishes she could turn back time to wake up to a normal day on October 7, 2023 – the day Hamas triggered the war by attacking Israel – and simply pack her children’s schoolbags instead of running for safety, and plan the family's meals instead of wondering where they will sleep. She wishes for the sound of morning laughter, not rockets, she said.
Naima Abu Shamala, 66
Naima, mother of five daughters and two sons, lives in a tent in Gaza city after her home was destroyed. She dreams of the small things war has taken from her: making coffee after waking up, washing clothes in a machine instead of by hand.
She wants to walk down the street without seeing destruction at every turn, to stop crying and to stop fearing tomorrow, she said. More than anything, she dreams of gathering her children and grandchildren around her once more and cooking their favourite meals.
Enduring in the face of a brutal war, these women hold on to love in spite of their grief and to hope amid darkness.
