” “"Everything is closed in Gaza. Only shooting noises have been heard since Monday. We are locked up in our homes and forced to crawl on all fours to avoid the bullets that might get in through the windows". This was told by Bandalay El Sayegh, director of the Caritas medical centre in Gaza, in the note that the Catholic body sent to SIR. The surgery, which is located near the Fatah headquarters, now in the hands of Hamas, is closed, and Caritas invited its operators to stay at home until security is restored. According to Caritas, everything is at standstill in Gaza today, the schools, the shops, the offices, except a few schools where the students are taking their year-end exams. About this, the Catholic body spoke with some students who are willing to leave Gaza as soon as possible unless the fighting ends. There are some who, says Caritas, defied the bullets and went out into the streets to ask for peace. Hundreds of intellectuals, students and workers marched in east Gaza as far as Rimal, hailing Palestine and asking the fighters to stop. Once in the security zone, the crowd was confronted by armed men, who opened fire and killed a young man, Shadi al-Ejla. ” “
