Laila El-Arja sat amidst the ruins, gazing into the distance, trying to comprehend what lay before her. Around her were twisted metal, shattered concrete, and splintered wood. This was once Laila and her family's happy place, now a painful reminder of the past 15 months of war in Gaza.
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02-13, 2025"We left Rafah on May 6. I was scared when I left," she told ABC News this week, "I wanted to take something from the house, anything, but there was no time. I grabbed the children and we left quickly. Military planes were circling overhead, dropping leaflets in our area."
"We pray every day that we can go home, that the bloodshed will end. Above all, we yearn for peace and safety. We live in constant fear, haunted by the fear of losing everything." Those fears have now become reality. Laila sat in the remains of what was once her home, having traveled earlier that day from the al-Mawasi camp in Khan Younis to Rafah in southern Gaza.
Seeing the house destroyed was not entirely unexpected. Over the past 15 months, Israeli strikes in Gaza have leveled entire neighborhoods in the region. While a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas that began over the weekend was widely celebrated, it also marked the start of a new, devastating chapter for many Gazans: rebuilding their homes and lives.
The day before her interview with ABC News, Laila's husband, Ibrahim, went to Rafah to see what remained of their home. "I dismantled our tent, and yesterday I went to check on our house, and it was completely destroyed," he said. "When I arrived in my neighborhood, I saw every house turned into rubble. When I arrived at my own home, I felt like I might collapse — walls that were once full of memories were now broken."
"We had memories in this house, bad times, songs, and also happy moments, sadness. With the destruction of the house, all of this is gone." Ibrahim and Laila El-Arja's story is a common one in Gaza. From the north to the south, and every neighborhood in between, buildings that were once welcoming homes are now ruins.
Gaza's housing crisis will be one of the enduring legacies of the war between Israel and Hamas, which humanitarian organizations estimate has displaced millions of people. Families are already struggling to rent space in the properties that still exist, but demand is so high that many are missing out. They will have to rely on temporary shelters in the coming months.
"We need houses, caravans, strong tents because we are in the winter season, and the winter has not ended," Ibrahim said. "Rebuilding requires heavy equipment, but we will do everything we can to set up tents and start over. Life must go on." The destruction of his home has not stopped Ibrahim from packing up and returning to Rafah.
He loaded his family's belongings into a truck he rented for the day, filling bags that once held humanitarian aid with clothes and household items he and his wife managed to salvage before fleeing. Rolled-up blankets, ripped mattresses, gas canisters, and even a bicycle were piled in the back, teetering precariously as they made their way south.
Ibrahim has done this before. He hopes that now, with the fragile ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas in place, he will not have to do it again. "When the ceasefire was announced, we felt a bittersweet emotion," he told ABC News. "We felt relief at the end of the war and the cessation of bloodshed for civilians. It brought some comfort, but all the pain we have suffered remains."
The tent he calls home in al-Mawasi will be set up amidst the ruins in Rafah. Laila worries about her children, who have lived through 15 months of war amid the ruins. "They are excellent students, they read the Quran, and they are devoted to their faith, but the war has changed them, it has taken a toll on their spirits," she said.
"We still have hope, but after witnessing the destruction, fear has taken root." "How many years will it take to rebuild our homes and restore them to what they were before?" Laila showed ABC News photos of what her house used to look like. She was proud of what she had built for her family.
"I used to tidy up the house, take pictures of it, and redesign its rooms." "I had a feeling deep down that I might lose it one day." "Before we were forced to leave, I found myself constantly taking pictures of the house, as if trying to capture it before it disappeared." "I love my house. I stayed in the house day and night, even though it was modest. I also had a garden."
