Unbreakable blood-ties in the shadow of Gaza warfare

Compared with other Gazans who are forced to stay in the West Bank and do not have relatives to live with, Sara was lucky because one of her daughters, who got married with a West Bank man five years ago, now lives in Ramallah.

Some 15 students from Gaza are currently studying in the Berzeit University in Ramallah. Like Sara, they are also "watching TV, following what's going on in Gaza," said one of the female student.

The Gaza Strip, seized by Hamas from Abbas' long-dominant Fatah movement after one-week-long infighting in June 2007, has been struggling under unprecedented Israeli air and ground offensive for over two weeks.

The ongoing Israeli military offensive has killed 901 Palestinians, half of them civilians, said medical officials, adding that more than 3,600 people were injured.

At the same time, some West Bankers are trapped in Gaza, and couldn't get back to their homes either.

Raed Zglool, 41, from a village called Dora Al-Qare near Ramallah, was deported by Israeli army to Gaza five years ago, as a kind of punishment.

Raed and his family, who are still living in Gaza, couldn't help expressing their sadness in the conversation with Xinhua via phone, as the coming month will be the end of their five-year deportation.

"I hope the Israeli army will allow us to go back to my home in Dora Al-Qare, because the Israeli army are bombarding Gaza every day, and I am so worried about me and my little children," Raed said.

Raed spent three years in an Israeli jail before he was deported to Gaza. The Israeli army charged Raed of participating in activities against the Jewish state.

Since warfare started in Gaza, Raed's relatives kept calling him to make sure that he is still alive. Yousef, Raed's brother living in Ramallah, told Xinhua that "we have been calling him every hour."

Yousef said "we're seeing awful pictures from Gaza (on TV), and we are so worried about Raed and his family, he has five daughters and a son, and we are worrying about all of them."

Editor:Zhang Pengfei