A hot shower, running water, light: In exile, each one returns me to Gaza

A hot shower, running water, light: In exile, each one returns me to Gaza Submitted by Ahmed Dremly on Sun, 06/28/2026 - 14:19 Three weeks after evacuating to Italy on a scholarship, every comfort of a safe and normal life only deepens my guilt for those I left behind A displaced Palestinian family rests in a tent at night during a heatwave at al-Bureij refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip on 26 June 2024 (Eyad Baba/AFP) Off After nearly three years of surviving the Israeli genocidal war on Gaza , I realise that leaving the enclave is not enough to ease the pain of losing a normal life. Nearly three weeks ago, I evacuated Gaza for the first time in my 29 years. I was able to travel on a master's scholarship to Italy, with the vital support of the municipality of San Giovanni a Piro, a town in the south that feels like a heavenly canopy of lush green spaces, mountain scenery and stunning views over the Mediterranean.