In the Burj Al-Barajneh camp in Beirut, Palestinians recall the details of October 7, 2023, as if it happened yesterday. Fatima Mohayesh remembers the morning of that day, saying: “We woke up to an indescribable joy, but then things turned tragic. Our weapons are simple, but our faith in God is great. We do not believe in Trump’s plans nor trust international promises; everyone has let us down.”
Al-Bashtalawi said: “The operation was a military action carried out, but it was followed by a violent Israeli response that led to the destruction of about 80% of the Gaza Strip and the deaths of tens of thousands. Nevertheless, this battle brought the Palestinian cause back to the forefront of international attention and affirmed that the Palestinian people are still committed to their rights to land and self-determination, despite the unlimited American support for Israel.”
Al-Bashtalawi adds: “The battle did not achieve all its objectives, nor did Israel achieve its announced goals. They could not eliminate the resistance or recover their captives without a price, but it sparked a new wave of solidarity and brought the issue of Palestinian state recognition back to the United Nations.”
On the eve of the second anniversary, the Israeli Ministry of Defense published its death toll since October 7, 2023, which reached 1,152 Israeli forces, 318 reservists across various sectors, 100 police officers, 9 members of the General Security Service, and 8 from the Prison Service. Statistics indicate that more than 40% of the dead were under the age of twenty-one.
Conversely, it was announced that the number of Palestinian deaths in the Gaza Strip reached 67,074 people, including 18,592 children and 11,200 women, as well as about 4,700 missing persons, including children and women.
