When darkness fell over eastern Gaza city on Saturday, Amin Dawla gathered his children and fled under heavy gunfire and artillery shelling.
Hours earlier, one of his neighbours had received a phone call ordering residents to leave their homes in the city's Zeitoun neighbourhood. The Israeli army, they were told, was preparing to carry out a limited military operation and advance beyond the “yellow line” dividing control of Gaza between Israel and Hamas.
At first, residents did not take the warning seriously.
Mr Dawla, 38, and his family of six had been living about 500 metres from the yellow line, in an area where tents stood beside the remains of damaged homes. Despite the destruction surrounding them, they had managed to return to some semblance of normal life, he said. That changed when the shooting began.
“We fled after dark, running from the area under fire while carrying our children,” Mr Dawla told The National. “The military vehicles sounded as though they were getting closer to us.”
He and several neighbours managed to reach a safer area, but the shelling and gunfire continued almost without interruption until dawn.
When residents tried to return the following morning to check on their tents and belongings, Mr Dawla said they discovered several people, including women, had been killed while trying to escape.
They also discovered that Israeli forces had moved about 300 metres beyond the line, encroaching on locations previously inhabited by their neighbours, and were now close to where they had been living.
“The area has now become dangerous,” Mr Dawla said. “We cannot return because of the danger and the proximity of the yellow line.”
He is searching for another shelter for his family, unsure whether their latest displacement will be temporary or permanent.
Mr Dawla’s account reflects what Palestinians describe as a continuing war hidden behind the language of a ceasefire.
According to figures released by Gaza’s Ministry of Health on Monday, Israeli violations since the ceasefire agreement was signed in October last year have killed 1,158 Palestinians and injured 3,756. Most of those killed and wounded were women and children, according to a source at the ministry.
Although large-scale military operations have decreased, residents say Israeli attacks, forced displacement orders, artillery fire and territorial expansion continue across Gaza.
“The tragedy in Gaza is repeated in the same way daily,” Palestinian political analyst Mustafa Ibrahim told The National. “The Israeli occupation does not recognise the ceasefire and continues its killings.”
He said the forced displacement and bombardment had never fully stopped, leaving families to endure repeated displacement and loss.
“Every day, families in Gaza experience bereavement,” Mr Ibrahim said. “The mediators and the international community are watching Gaza under the assumption that the war has ended, but the reality is that the war is renewed every day.”
The continued advance of the yellow line has become a particular source of fear for residents living near Gaza’s eastern areas.
For Palestinians, the line is not merely a military marker. Its movement can transform an inhabited neighbourhood into an inaccessible and dangerous zone within hours, forcing families to abandon tents, damaged homes and the few possessions they have managed to preserve.
Mr Ibrahim said international mediators must step in to halt the expansion of Israeli-controlled areas and the continuing attacks.
“What is required from the mediators and the international community is intervention to stop the machinery of destruction, killing and devastation in Gaza,” he said.
Social media activists have launched a campaign titled They Lied to You in an attempt to draw international attention to the violations.
Ahmed Al Majayda, a Palestinian social media activist involved in the campaign, said its aim is to challenge the belief that the war has ended.
“The Israeli army has not stopped targeting Gaza,” Mr Al Majayda told The National. “The campaign aims to remind the world of Gaza and to emphasise that the war is not over.”
He said Israel continues to attack homes, civilians in the streets and displaced families living in tents. At the same time, Israeli restrictions at Gaza's border crossings continue to limit the entry of food and humanitarian relief.
“Every day, Gaza mourns new victims, including children killed in attacks targeting entire families,” he said.
Mr Al Majayda said the ceasefire had created a misleading impression of safety to people outside the Palestinian territory, while its residents continue to face death, displacement and shortages.
“The world believes that the ceasefire is protecting Palestinians and preventing further bloodshed,” he said. “In reality, it has become a cover behind which Israel continues its daily crimes against civilians.”
